Reality Redux
by ZabuFanfics
Summary: Yako, an ordinary human working as a model, is suddenly confronted with the disturbing truth her body harbors a treasure that, if obtained by a demon, will give them the keys to ruling the underworld. And her only form of protection comes from Nougami Neuro, who's true motives are unclear. Will Yako avoid getting slaughtered by demons after the treasure inside of her? Heavy AU.
1. Savior

To anyone else, the day looked like it would be a good day. The weather was perfect -not too hot, not too cold, the perfect day to go out. But Katsuragi Yako was certainly not anyone else as she strained herself to smile in front of the camera and her boss, Godai, loomed behind the cameraman with the same look of exhaustion plastered to his face no matter what she did.

"No, no, _NO_!" Godai finally snapped. Yako broke from her pose, relaxing into the terrible posture she normally held, expressing her own frustrations via a loud groan. Both he and she both knew that Yako was only there because of Kanae, her friend and higher-up in Godai's fashion and modeling agency. She just happened to offer up the opportunity while Yako was between jobs, and being a model alongside her best friend seemed appealing at the time. That is, until she actually got to doing it.

"Maybe if you actually gave me some direction I'd be able to-" Yako began as she lost her balance on the heels she was wearing. She gasped as she desperately reached out to try and catch herself on one of the props that were around her, only to fail. Instead, she ran into the backdrop, taking it down with her with a crash. As the entire set slowly collapsed she could hear the entire staff that had been watching her fail at the job she had been graciously given begin to either panic or groan, seeing as this wasn't the first time Yako had single-handedly sabotaged her own set.

"Yako!" Godai yelled as the entire set finally came to rest haphazardly about the floor. He certainly looked like he had more to say than just her name, but instead he rested his face against his palm and shook his head.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" Yako began again, trying to pull herself up on a prop that had been spared from the demolition of the set, only to have it collapse under the weight of her trying to pull herself up and fall to the floor with the rest of the odds and ends along with Yako, who's head slammed against the floor. Clutching the back of her skull she held back tears of pain, as well as frustration.

Still holding her head she sat up, looking over to see Godai whispering something to Kanae who had come for multiple reasons, mostly for support and to convince Godai for the thousandth time to give Yako yet another chance. Either Kanae was good at manipulating people or Godai had the patience far greater than a saint. She could feel Godai's angry gaze run over her for a moment as the two of them whispered to one another as the rest of the staff finally arrived to help Yako and to try and restore the set. Ignoring their offers to help her to her feet, she slipped off her heels just in case they took her straight back down to the ground again and slowly stood upright. It was obvious this time around it would take a lot more time for Kanae to convince Godai that Yako could still be a valuable asset to his company, and she didn't want to hang around to watch. Her simple presence seemed to be annoying Godai anyway, so while everyone else were busily trying to rebuild what Yako had knocked down, she walked over to the exit that led into the alleyway, hoping a bit of peace and quiet would prepare her for whatever was ahead.

"You really did it this time, Yako," She told herself as she leaned up against the brick wall of the building. "All you ever do is cause problems for everyone." She looked down at the dress Godai had given her to model in. She hadn't realized it before, but there was a giant rip that reached all the way to her thigh.

"Great!" She moaned, looking up at the slice of sky she could see through the towering buildings, as if she were waiting to relief to grace her from above. "Maybe it would be better if I just disappeared."

"Maybe I can be of assistance." An unfamiliar voice hissed. Yako jumped, not having expected someone to actually say something back to her, much less offer their services to help her disappear. Yako looked on both sides of her, but no one seemed to be there.

"Hey, who's there?" Yako asked. "This isn't funny, you know?"

"Who said I was making a joke?" The voice answered. She suddenly felt two hands slowly work their way through her long, blond hair, reaching out on both sides of her. And on each, abnormally-long finger was a long, hooked claw. She also could feel someone breathing heavily down her neck and drool slowly ooze onto her shoulder. This would all be horribly frightening enough, but the fact it was physically impossible for someone to be behind her only made the whole situation worse. "I was very… very serious."

Too frightened to scream, Yako quickly whipped her head around to see a man, head and most of his body phased through the brick wall. That is, he resembled a man, but he definitely wasn't one. His entire face was morphed, his mouth and jaw extended from his face like a beak wrapped in skin. His mouth was open in a sly, wide smile, exposing rows of razor-sharp teeth from front to back. His eyes were large and slanted, resting on the sides of his face and fixed on her.

"Now, now, don't make this difficult, or I'll have to settle for ripping your body to shreds before claiming my prize." The man-creature cackled, bringing his clawed hands closer inward, almost close enough to wrap them around her neck.

"Claiming your prize!?" Yako gasped, although she had no real time to stop and think about what he ever could mean by "his prize". She had more important things to worry about, like the fact he was inches away from strangling her. Twisting around, she narrowly escaped his clutches, a single hooked claw marring her cheek. She stumbled toward the entrance that led back into the building (tripping on the hem of her tattered dress) only to have the deformed man nimbly leap in front of her, blocking her escape route.

"I see, so you'd rather have me kill you slowly then?" He asked, whipping away a sticky trail of drool that was making it's way down his beak. "Well I can't say I didn't warn you." Yako tried to escape a second time, this time into the street in hopes someone would save her, but the man caught her by her hair, pulling her back and throwing her to the ground. Yako cried in pain as she hit the filthy pavement, unable to pick herself up quick enough before her assailant pressed her arms and legs to the ground.

"No!" Yako cried, trying and failing to struggle out from under him.

"Now, now, don't refuse me my treasure and my meal." He chuckled, abnormally long tongue lulling from his mouth and licking the trail of blood from off her cheek.

"Your treasure? I think you're mistaken." Interrupted a voice. The man-creature growled, looking over his shoulder to whoever had spoken. Curiosity overcoming fear, Yako looked as well. Behind them stood a man, towering over the both of them, looking down at them with piercing green eyes that peered out through black strands of hair that hung in his face. The rest of his hair was a dirty shade of blond and he was dressed head-to-toe in deep violet and black formal attire. Yako couldn't put her finger on it, but something inside her was afraid of him, even though he could possibly stop the beast above her from doing…whatever he was planning on doing.

"Don't butt in where you aren't welcome, trash." The horrid man snapped, baring his teeth. The other man didn't even flinch, looking down at him as if he were some sort of insect.

"I'd say the same thing to you, but it seems you already have." The other man chuckled darkly. "Someone like you is hardly worthy of obtaining the Ultimate Mystery." Yako looked up at him confused, hoping he'd explain further what exactly this "ultimate mystery" was.

"Someone like me? Do you have any idea who you're talking to, fool?" The man-creature hissed, releasing Yako so he could turn to face him. Yako desperately wanted to run away more than anything, but fear had a just-as-tight hold on her as the man-creature had.

"Of course I do: I'm speaking to an insect." The man scoffed. "I've surprised even myself that I've shared this many words with trash like you." The monster of a man growled, looking like he'd long since had enough.

"Trash, am I?" The man-creature snarled, "I'll show you who exactly is trash!" With alarming speed he lunged at the man, who didn't even bother to side step the attack. Instead he stood his ground and practically welcomed the man-creature's claws as they struck his neck, opening a deep gash from which a frightening amount of blood flew, dying the brick walls and ground below in deep crimson. The killing blow made, the man's body fell limply onto the pavement, splashing against a puddle of his own blood. Yako's eyes opened wide as she watched the only hopes of being saved crumble before her eyes, mouth open in a silent scream as drops of blood splashed against her body.

"See who's trash now?" The man-creature laughed heartily, kicking the dead man's body several times before remembering about Yako, who was staring up at him with terror. "Now… where was I?" He chuckled, licking his claws clean. Yako shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Please, I-I-"

"Heh, humans are always cutest when they beg." He grinned. "And tastiest, too." Without another word he wildly swung a clawed hand at her, ready to kill her just like he had killed the other man. But, despite being frozen by fear, Yako somehow managed to find the strength to dodge his blow, his claws slicing her hair instead of her tender flesh. Her long hair was hacked short in a fraction of a second, but at that point it wasn't like it mattered, seeing as it would have been her body that could have been victim to his claws.

"Oh, so you still have a little fight in you, do you?" The horrific man laughed. "I guess I'll play your little game, it only makes me hungrier. And the hungrier I am the more satisfying the meal."

"Well, it seems you'll be going hungry for quite a while." Yako gasped as she witnessed the man she had once thought dead stand up and clutch the back of the man-creatures head. He had a wide grin on his face, exposing the same sort of pointed teeth and his green eyes seemed like they were glowing. The demonic-looking man, who seemed confident and proud before, seemed to be overcome by fear, now, with the man's fingers wrapped around his skull. "Because this is a meal that you aren't qualified to enjoy." With an effortless squeeze, the inhuman man's skull cracked, blood flowing from his nose, mouth and eyes as the other man crushed his head like it was nothing. Finally, at that moment, Yako was able to scream.

"Heh, it seems I'll have to continue this another time then." The man sighed, grin still on his face as he dropped the dead man's body to the ground where his own body had once lay. His deformed face slowly morphed into that of a normal person, skull still crushed in. "Until then, don't walk into anymore dark alleyways." As quickly as he appeared, he vanished, leaving behind a small flurry of purple feathers just in time for Kanae and Godai to come rushing outside.

"Yako! What's going- OH MY GOD!" Kanae gasped, eyes quickly falling on the dead man's body.

"What the hell happened!?" Godai gasped, covering his mouth in shock.

"I…He…" Yako began, but there was no way she could describe it. She was too frightened and shaken to form a complete sentence, let alone actually tell them what happened. It would sound absolutely crazy, anyway. The only thing she could think to do was break down and cry, which was what she did, and as she began to sob, she hid her face in her hands. Something told her this was only the beginning, and it didn't stop her crying in the slightest.

* * *

After finally managing to calm Yako down, Godai and Kanae decided not to pry. Instead, Godai called the police and told Kanae to take Yako home before they showed up, seeing as he didn't want any sort of bad publicity from one of his models somehow being involved in some gruesome murder -although he was sure Yako would never do such a thing. Kanae didn't want to talk about the strange catastrophe as much as Yako, and tried making Yako feel more at ease as they walked home, offering to treat her to a meal at one of her favorite restaurants. As tempting as food was for Yako, she didn't feel like eating after all that. She turned down every offer and, besides that, walked to her apartment with Kanae in silence.

"Still don't want to talk about it, huh?" Kanae sighed. She was sitting beside Yako in her apartment bathroom, cutting Yako's ruined hair so that the ends would be even. Yako kept her lips tightly pressed together. She desperately wanted to tell Kanae, but what could she say that wouldn't make her sound like a madwoman? It was best she not open up to her friend about the attack, so instead she simply shook her head. Kanae groaned, but decided not to continue to press the matter as she made the final cuts to Yako's hair.

"Will you be okay alone tonight, then?" Kanae asked, standing up and placing the scissors on the counter. "You aren't going to do something stupid if I leave, are you?"

"I won't." Yako sighed, still sitting on the floor. She didn't have to look but she could tell her hair was definitely shorter than it used to me. She could hardly even feel it brush against her shoulders.

"Okay, I'll take your word for it, then." Kanae shrugged, worry heavy in her voice. "I should get back to Godai and the others- they probably could use an extra hand over there with the cops swarming the place." She walked out of the bathroom leaving Yako alone.

"You can call me any time if you want me to come back!" Kanae called from the door as she left. Yako didn't bother to answer, though. She was too busy staring back at the girl looking back at her in the mirror. Her hair was extremely short, just as she had feared. She'd read somewhere that shorter hair was in, but she didn't like the look on herself. She looked at the locks of hair that had been spared from the attack that surrounded her feet in despair. She personally felt her hair was her best asset, and now it was gone. Sure, she was lucky to even be alive, but she would have liked to have made it out with a decent amount of hair instead of the hacked-short atrocity she'd been left with.

A knock at the door brought her around from her moping. It was probably Kanae, who was probably too worried about her friend to leave the building. It was to be expected, they'd been friends since middle school after all. She'd be worried too if Kanae had been involved in something like she had.

"I'm coming!" Yako called, walking to the door. "I guess you couldn't keep my word for…" Yako began, only to find there was no one there. "Kanae?" She peered into the hallway, which was completely empty. Looking around confused, she then slowly backed into her apartment and shut the door.

"That was strange, I must be hearing things." She said to herself, turning around. But as she did she came face to face with a pair of glowing, green eyes -glowing green eyes she'd seen once before, but that was enough to have them burned into her memory. Gasping with shock she leaped backward and ran into the door.

"Why are you so surprised?" The man from before asked with a grin, "Did I not say we'd continue later?" He paused. "Well, then again, I can't expect humans to remember much, your species' brains being so small."

"What do you want!?" She cried, looking for something -anything- to defend herself with. Quickly, she brandished an umbrella that was left next to the door, but it was more than obvious that her weapon of choice wasn't going to make him back off.

"Well, I want what every demon currently wants, but what I want more is to keep them from getting it." He explained, grasping the end of the umbrella she was pointing at him and effortlessly bent it until the metal pole snapped in two, leaving Yako with nothing. "The treasure that's inside of you."

"What are you talking about?! What is this treasure you keep on talking about?! I don't have anything!"

"You're sadly mistaken- you certainly do have something; that something being something every demon in hell wants to get their hands on." He placed both of his gloved hands at either side of Yako seeing that she was readying to try and escape. Yako gasped, flinching.

"I guess you still don't understand, do you?" Yako remained in frightened silence. "I shouldn't be surprised- a sub-creature like you probably doesn't have the mental capacity to understand."

"What…what are you talking about?" Yako asked again. "Tell me what's going on!"

"What's going on is that you've been chosen as the vessel for a very powerful demonic energy source." He finally said. "It won't effect you in any way, but if a demon should rip you apart and take it from you, they'll obtain the keys to ruling the underworld." Yako looked at him in disbelief, but by the look on his face he definitely wasn't lying to her. "The Ultimate Mystery..." He paused for a second, seeming like he was thinking about something before he forcefully pressed his lips against hers, locking the both of them in a deep kiss. Yako wanted nothing more than to be able to pull away as the stranger violated her mouth, but after seeing the things he could do without any effort at all, it was clearly obvious objecting to anything he did would be unwise on her part.

"W…what…why…" Yako stammered as their lips finally parted.

"What?" He looked at her with a bored expression -not exactly the way someone looked after they kissed someone like he did. "I was simply checking to see if you really are the Ultimate Mystery's container, otherwise I would have had to kill you." He licked his lips. "But it seems you're just too stupid to comprehend it, that's all."

"I'm not-"

"Neuro."

"Excuse me?"

"My name. Nougami Neuro. I figure I might as well tell you, no matter how inferior you are. We'll be spending quite a bit of time together, so I figure, since you'll be in my presence for so long, I might as well lower myself to your level and introduce myself." He turned his back to her, but looked over his shoulder. "And, what does a worm like you call herself?"

"Y…Yako. Katsuragi Yako. And what do you mean by spending-" But before she could finish, Neuro disappeared again, leaving behind only feathers, just like before. Yako stood in her entryway in dumbfounded silence for the longest time before falling against her door and sliding to the floor. This was too outrageous for her to believe. It had to be a dream, there was no other explanation!

"Just go to bed, Yako," She told herself. "You'll wake up tomorrow and everything will be normal again… or at least…" She picked up one of the feathers Neuro had left behind. "…I hope so."


	2. Biggest Fan

Yako was awoken suddenly by the abrupt sound of knocking. It wasn't coming from the door; the sound was much too close. For a moment, she figured she had dreamed it all until the knocking sound came again, even louder this time.

"What in the world-?" Yako said getting up and rubbing her neck, only to find her long hair she expected to wake up to wasn't there like she had hoped.

"No…" She gasped. "So it was real-" The realization everything that happened just the other day was reality was soon joined by fear as the window above her bed shattered. Screaming, she leaped back to the foot of her bed, avoiding the cascading glass. Clutching her chest for fear her heart would burst from it from beating too fast, she caught a glimpse of a strange shape poking out from the curtains that covered the broken window. Was it… a shoe?

"What the hell?" She thought aloud, slowly drawing near to the window, making sure not to step on the broken glass that was scattered about her bed. She quickly drew her curtains back, not to be welcomed by morning sunshine, but by someone standing outside her bedroom window, their foot sticking through the broken glass. It took her a while to recollect before she realized who it was: the strange man from the other day, Neuro. Gasping, she jumped back again, afraid to actually properly open the window for him. The fact he was outside her window didn't make any sense either, seeing as her room was on the fifth floor and there was no way to simply climb to her bedroom window.

"Isn't it a human custom to answer when someone knocks?" He asked with an annoyed look on his face as he pulled out his foot.

"But that's a window!" Yako cried. Neuro lifted an eyebrow, not fully understanding what she meant by that. Instead, he simply retracted his leg and ran his foot through the window again, this time shattering a good portion of it to pull himself through.

"Not anymore."

Yako squeaked in fear, falling off the edge of her bed and trying to crawl away.

"Now, is that anyway to treat the person who saved your life?" Neuro smirked, leaping in her path. "The least you could do is greet me…although you're off to a good start; you're already on your knees, bowing."

"I'm not bowing!" Yako objected, quickly getting to her feet and jumping back away from Neuro. "And what are you doing here?!"

"You certainly don't represent your own species very well with that memory of yours." Neuro snorted. "Don't tell me you forgot about last night…like how you forgot about all that shattered glass?"

"Shattered-" Yako was quickly reminded of the fact there was glass all over the floor as she felt a sliver of what used to be her window pierce the tender flesh of her foot. Pain quickly shot up from her newly-inflicted injury as she cried out in agony. Tears welled up in her eyes as she clenched her teeth, lifting up her foot to inspect the damage. Sure enough, there was a sharp shard of glass buried in the soul of her foot, a steady flow of blood flowing from the wound.

"Ow…" She sobbed, leaning against the wall for support as she gingerly tried to pull out the shard. The fact Neuro was just standing there, observing her pain with a half-smile, wasn't making any of this any better.

"Are you honestly trying to remove the glass, or are you deciding whether you want to leave it in?" Neuro asked coldly.

"Shut up!" Yako snapped as tears rolled down her face. It was humiliating, crying in front of someone she had just met. "It's your fault the glass was there in the first place!"

"Is it my fault you stupidity forgot it was there?" He retorted. Yako opened her mouth to speak, only to turn her head back down to the glass that had punctured her foot. Try as she might, trying to remove the glass only caused her more pain.

"Here." Neuro said, walking over after watching Yako fail to simply remove the glass several times.

"Here wha-?" Yako said, only to feel a massive shock of pain quickly overtake her as Neuro drew the glass out easily. Her eyes were open wide, as well as her mouth in silent screaming. All that managed to escape was a choked squeal as she grasped her bleeding foot.

"This tiny piece of glass hurt you that much?" Neuro snorted, inspecting the glass sliver that he had extracted from Yako's foot. "Does everyone of your species have the same poor resistance to pain?" Yako didn't bother to answer, nor did she really want to. Instead she hopped around him, wiping away tears and leaving a trail of blood spots as she unsteadily traveled to her first aid kit in her bathroom.

"Just go away!" She finally shouted as she rummaged around the unorganized box for a bandage.

"I'd most certainly like to -being around humans isn't what I most enjoy." Neuro told her coldly, walking into the bathroom as well. Much to Yako's surprise he grasped her chin and forced her head upward to face him. She gasped, dropping the disorganized first aid box, the messy contents spilling all over the tiled floor. "But like I told you before, you actually have something of interest, and I won't forgive myself if low class filth get their claws on it." Yako sighed, exhausted, as she tried to pull away from Neuro's grip, only to get jerked back again.

"And another thing…" He hissed, his glowing green eyes gazing at her coldly. "I would recommend not trying to order me around. I definitely won't listen and it most certainly won't end well for you." Yako gulped, catching a glimpse of Neuro's knife-edged teeth as he warned her.

"Okay, okay!" She nodded. The swirling green glow of Neuro's eyes ceased as he let go of her chin.

"Good, it seems you understand some things after all." Neuro chuckled as Yako searched the ground (now covered in the clutter of her first aid box) for a bandage. As soon as she had blocked the blood flow (Not necessarily the pain, much to her displeasure) she hobbled back into her bedroom, only to be succumbed by panic once again.

"AAAH!" She cried. "I'm going to be late!" In a dash she quickly grabbed the first clothes she could get her hands on from inside her closet and began to change from her pajamas before she realized a certain someone was watching her like they were watching an animal at a zoo.

"Do you mind!?" She asked, closing her unbuttoned shirt with her hands.

"Mind what?" Neuro questioned. Yako opened her mouth to explain, but she was certain that he wasn't going to bother to listen. Blushing like mad she continued taking off her pajamas, facing the other way and trying her hardest to forget Neuro was still there. Once her rushed decision of an outfit was on -a simple tank top and shorts- she rushed to the bathroom, only to realize, again, there was hardly any reason to. Her hairbrush was in hand, but her now-short hair didn't exactly do much in her sleep and had remained tame. Groaning, she grabbed a hairclip instead and pinned some of her bangs that were hanging in her face to the side before brushing her teeth for an unsatisfactory amount of time, followed by running for the door, Neuro close behind.

"Wait, wait, hold on!" Yako exclaimed, whirling around. "You aren't going to follow me to work, are you!?"

"Oh, and I suppose you'd rather be attacked by another demon in my absence?" Neuro asked. Angrily, Yako threw her hands up in the air, giving up, and continued for the door.

"Fine, just don't do anything weird!" She sighed, slipping on a pair of shoes and heading out her door.

Yako never felt so uncomfortable going outside before. One reason being she could be attacked any minute by strange creatures from hell, the other being she was being tailed by Neuro, who didn't exactly do a good job keeping a low profile seeing as he towered over everyone else. She was totally on edge, looking back and fourth in a paranoid manner, constantly catching glimpses of people looking up at Neuro and reminding her he was still tagging closely behind her- and not demons she expected to spring on her at any moment.

Another feeling she wasn't accustomed to was feeling relief walking into the modeling agency's building late. Neuro was still very much behind her, but at least here she felt a little more secure.

"Yako!" Yako turned around to see Kanae, who'd been talking to Godai (probably about the fact that Yako would "arrive any minute" and to "stop worrying") walking over. She gave a half-hearted wave and smile as her friend came towards her, hoping with all her might that by some miracle she wouldn't realize she was being followed.

"See, I told you she wouldn't skip work!" Kanae called over her shoulder to Godai. "You put the fear of hell into her about being late so much…" She laughed, turning back around to Yako.

"So, Yako, who's this?" She asked, pointing to Neuro. Yako sighed, not even bothering to acknowledge the fact he was there.

"Nobody, just a friend…" She muttered. "He decided to tag along today."

"Oh…" Kanae leaned in closer, grinning like Yako had told some sort of joke. "By friend…do you mean boyfriend?" Yako coughed, choking on the gratuitous amount of air she'd inhaled as Kanae assumed the unthinkable.

"No, you've got it all wrong!" Yako shouted, embarrassed "He's nothing like that!"

"Heh, you're blushing." Kanae pointed out. "It's so cute- you've been together for such a short period of time you can't bring yourself to admit it yet."

"I'm telling you, it's nothing like that!" Yako cried.

"Yako's got a boyfriend! Yako's got a boyfriend!" Kanae mockingly sang as she dodged Yako's attempt to smack her. "See you on set, love-birds!"

"Kanae…" Yako groaned, hanging her head in embarrassment.

"When that human says 'boyfriend', could she mean that-?"

"Come on, let's get to the set before she goes and spreads the jolly news to everyone." Yako grumbled.

"See, see! I told you! There he is!" Kanae announced as Yako and Neuro walked on set, the same exact thing from yesterday set up the way it was before she managed to bring it crashing down. Yako hid her face in her hands as everyone in the room began to chatter about her bringing along her new boyfriend to work.

"Kanae…" She moaned, walking over her friend and holding back the strongest of urges to hit her.

"There, there. Now you don't have to keep it a secret anymore." Kanae smiled, patting Yako on the back. "I'm surprised, though, he's pretty handsome." Yako looked at her in disbelief, mouth hanging open.

"Oi, if you two are done gossiping, I think miss Yako has a job to do… _again_." Godai called, pointing to the dress that was set up, ready for Yako to wear.

"Coming!" Yako called, pushing past Kanae, who chuckled.

"You stay here." Yako quickly told Neuro as she past him. "I don't want you watching me change again."

Peace and quiet was finally Yako's once she was in the changing rooms, being more than careful as she put the dress on. If it hadn't been for the incident the other day, Godai would have made a giant scene over the gigantic rip in the last dress she wore and she wasn't about to risk giving him a second chance. Once the dress was on she studied herself in the mirror, her eyes traveling to her new hairdo once again. No matter how many times she looked at herself, it just didn't seem to fit at all, especially with the formal wear Godai had given her.

"Just go out there and try not to destroy the set this time." She told herself, taking a deep breath before turning to walk out of the dressing room. Her exit seemed to be blocked, however, by a gigantic mass. Sighing, she knew right away who it was, and it made her wish it were Neuro.

Even with a floundering modeling career, she had still managed to accumulate fans… well, _a_ fan. From the first time her first modeling photos were released, the same guy kept on showing up where she least expected. He was rather corpulent, and it surprised her he managed to slip through security so easily without someone seeing the gigantic, sweaty mass of a man. And whenever they had the unfortunate chance of meeting, he'd always offer up something for her to sign and say nothing- only breath heavily. Kanae would tell her to appreciate having a fan at all, and Yako would if it wasn't so unbearably creepy.

"Oh…h…hello." She said, putting on a fake smile for her biggest fan. Again, like every single time, he remained silent, panting like he had just ran all the way there as he handed he a magic marker and stretched out his shirt as she took it.

"S-Sign!" That was the only thing he ever really said to her: to sign where he motioned for her to. She sighed, uncapping the marker.

"Sure, sure." She said, trying to keep the smile and not be overcome by the stench of body odor that was only worse now that they were in close proximity to each other in a small hallway. Quickly, she signed her name down his sweat-covered shirt, the ink of the marker becoming saturated from the moisture clinging to the fabric.

"There you go," Yako told him just as something dripped onto her hand as she finished signing. She felt a shiver of disgust run up her spine as she assumed sweat had just splashed onto her hand. But pulling away she realized it wasn't sweat, but…drool?

"Ah-!" She exclaimed, quickly wiping it off. She was creeped out, but she didn't want to be rude. But, as she looked up to face her biggest fan, she was overcome by fear. His face had mutated, his mouth now several times wider and bearing several rows of spiked teeth. His eyes were wider than natural and every inch of them were a dark red, iris and pupil no longer visible. His large meaty hands had twisted at each finger, creating spirals of skin and nails that formed the shape of claws. Yako gasped as she dropped the marker to the ground.

It was a demon!

"Help! Someone he-" She cried, trying to take refuge in the changing room. But before she could continue her cries for help his arm stretched out like it was made out of putty and pinned her against the wall. He slowly waddled in through the door, bringing himself closer to where Yako was trapped. She was pressed so tightly against the wall, she could hardly breath. Foul breath met her nose as she felt the stench of the demonic beast reach her face, as long trails of drool dripped down from his mouth and onto her like sticky rain.

"N…no…" She gasped as he pressed her up against the wall harder, opening his already wide, shark-like mouth to bite down on his prey. "N-Neuro! Neuro!" She never thought she'd actually want to actually call out his name for help, but it didn't seem like she had any other choice.

Just as the creature was about to dig his teeth into her, a spray of blood exploded from his head and his body froze before becoming limp and falling to the floor with a massive thud as Yako screamed in response. Behind him was Neuro, nonchalantly slipping one of his gloves back on.

"And this is what happens when you decide to go out on your own." He told her, looking annoyed. Yako shakily looked over to the demon, who had reverted back to his pudgy, human self, a gigantic bloody hole now in the back of his skull, something that looked like claw marks running deep down his back. She felt as if she were about to puke, so she quickly averted her eyes elsewhere -though most of the room was covered in the blood of her once biggest fan, it was much more tasteful than the gruesome corpse lying at her feet.

"…All this time…he was a demon?" She asked herself in shock.

"No, this one was human to begin with." Neuro corrected, walking over to the corpse. "He must have been possessed."

"P-Possessed?" She asked, voice still quivering as her eyes continued to dart everywhere but the body.

"You understand what that means, don't you worm?" Neuro looked over to her, unamused. "Or do I have to explain everything to you?" Yako remained silent, lips pressed tightly together as she shook which, to Neuro, was a "yes". "Demons sometimes possess humans to do their dirty work for them. Whoever is behind this is probably a coward, and it would be a waste if they got hold of the Ultimate Mystery." He lightly nudged his victim's head with the tip of his shoe. Yako opened her mouth to speak, possibly for him to stop, but Neuro cut her off before she could begin.

"You should go before anyone comes back here and sees this mess." He told her. "I'll take care of it before anyone finds him." He looked down at the dead body with an almost hungry look.

"But-" Yako paused. Her legs felt unsteady and tears blurred her vision. She feared that, if she took a single step she'd fall to the ground, unable to support herself. But there was also the fear of someone walking in, trying to find her, and coming across this mess. Dragging anyone else into her situation, possibly to be maimed, was just as frightening as the bloody body of her biggest fan. "Fine…" She finally found the strength to look down at the motionless body of her one and only fan lying in a puddle of his own blood. A sickened feeling came over her once again as she shivered and quickly left the room, stumbling and tripping over herself as she wiped at her eyes, trying to salvage her makeup her tears had undoubtedly ruined before she made it back on set.

"There you are," Godai groaned. "What took you so long!?"

"Ah…um…" Yako was terrible at lying, but she certainly wasn't about to tell then that her assumed boyfriend was disposing of a gigantic dead body in the dressing room. She stumbled and stammered, trying to find words that didn't seem to exist.

"Hey, boss, there are some things a girl doesn't feel comfortable talking about." Kanae laughed, throwing her arm over Yako's quivering shoulder. "Let's not pry and cut my friend a little slack." Godai sighed, shaking his head.

"Fine, but lets _TRY_ and actually do this right this time..." He gave Yako an ugly glance. "And _not destroy the set_."

"Yes sir!" Yako nodded, straightening up and hurrying over.

The entire shoot was exactly the same as before: Yako trying her hardest and her hardest certainly not being enough to meet Godai's standards. Yako couldn't help but be stiff and ridged, though, as every spare moment had her brain trailing off to the horror she had witnessed in the dressing room.

"I swear, all your unimpressive modeling is going to force us all out of a job." Godai groaned after the shoot was done as Yako retreated to the changing rooms again. Neuro was waiting outside the door, looking pleased with himself.

"Done already?" He asked with a grin. Yako didn't bother to respond, just passed him by and walked inside the dressing room, locking the door. She leaned against it as she slowly slid to the ground. No matter how much she tried to focus on work, all she could think of was that once innocent (albeit creepy) young man who probably had every item he owned signed by her twisting and transforming into a demonic creature, accompanied by the memory of Neuro killing him right in front of her. She shook violently, trying to shake off her feelings of dread as she pulled her legs against her chest and rested her head against her knees.

"Get it together," She whispered to herself, finally standing back up after some time. The dressing room was restored to normality, much to her surprise. She had expected Neuro to do something strange, but everything seemed normal to her. There was also zero trace of evidence a dead body had been there.

"I wonder how the demon possessed him." She wondered aloud. "I'm pretty sure he didn't get out much…"

* * *

"Stupid computer." Kanae groaned, leaning backwards in her chair. She swore, she had the most fickle Internet connection on the planet. Yet another "this page cannot be displayed" notice replaced whatever site she was on. "I'll never get my work done at this rate."

As she complained, the screen suddenly turned black.

"No! Don't tell me you're turning off on your own now, too!" She cried, grabbing the sides of the monitor. As she grasped her computer, something emerged from the darkness: a pair of eyes and a toothy grin looked back at her.

"AH!" She screamed, jumping back.

"By the order of your princess..." The face within the darkness of her screen spoke. "I command you to bring me the Ultimate Mystery, loyal peasant."


	3. Best Friend

Yako groaned as she looked down at her cell phone screen that displayed an empty inbox. Sitting down on her bed she snapped the phone closed in defeat, flopping down in the sheets to see Neuro looking down at her from the ceiling.

"God!" She gasped, sitting up and taking a deep breath before looking back up at the grinning demon again, who was reclined right above her. No matter how many days he had been there, seeing someone looking at her from above with those eyes wasn't sitting well with her at all. "Can't you just stay on the ground like a normal person!?"

"Who says I'm a normal person, worm?" Neuro smirked. "Walking around on the filthy ground is what insects do, and I don't enjoy it when I have to lower myself to your species' level." Yako didn't even want to try and respond. It was clear by now Neuro was far from convincing that she or anyone else wasn't some sort of insect. Instead, she reached for her phone again, flipping it open to find, once again, that her inbox was empty.

"You know, normally, when people disappear, they don't have much time to send you pointless e-mails." Neuro told her. Angrily, she shut her phone, turning her gaze up to the demon who was looking down at her with a knowing look, like he knew exactly what had happened to make Kanae vanish.

"She wouldn't just leave without calling me- we're closer than that!" She hissed. "You wouldn't understand, all you care about is protecting your stupid treasure." She turned back to her cell phone clutched in her hand. It had been almost a week since Kanae had vanished. No one had heard from her before or after, no one had seen her, and her apartment was empty. It was getting to the point that her disappearing act was starting to make headlines addressed to her mourning fan base that everything was being done to find her.

In the meantime, Yako had been picking up the slack without her. She was working a good amount more than she used to, all without Kanae to cheer her on from the sidelines or to restrain Godai from badgering her after every shoot. Without Kanae, work was slowly growing worse and worse. And without Kanae, life outside work was certainly starting to feel lonely. The only thing she could do was compulsively look at her cell phone hoping- praying- that Kanae would contact her. Leaving work without telling her co-workers, disappearing off the face of the earth without informing her fans- those things could be overlooked, but the fact she hadn't even told Yako- her oldest and best friend- and hadn't even once tried to make contact with her left her feeling uneasy with the fact that something bad might have happened to her.

"You wouldn't understand at all."

Later that night, Yako was roused from sleep as her phone violently vibrated next to her pillow. Excitement welled up in her chest as she sat up as quick as she could and snatched her cell phone. Her heart raced as the name she had been waiting to see appeared on the glowing screen. She nearly dropped her phone in her excitement, turning her head to the side and cupping her hand over her mouth, as not to wake Neuro, who was slumbering above her.

"H-Hello?" She whispered. "Kanae, is that you? Where have you been?! Where are you now!? What-"

"Slow down there, Yako, one question at a time!" Kanae's voice laughed. Yako could feel every inch of her body relax in relief from hearing her friends voice after days of expecting the worse to have happened.

"W…Where have you been, we've all been worried about you!" Yako hissed, only to be laughed at, again, by her friend.

"I'm sorry I worried you all, I just needed to get away for a few days. You understand, don't you?" Kanae asked her, her voice suddenly sounding exhausted.

"I guess, but you didn't even call me… I was…"

"Look, I can tell you're getting all choked up over there." Kanae chuckled. "I don't have much time, but I can answer all of your questions if you come and meet me." Yako's eyes darted to her clock to find it was later than she expected, but she was fine with risking being late for work and having bags under her eyes if it was for Kanae.

"Okay, I'll come, just tell me where you are." Yako sighed.

"Good… oh, and try not to bring your little boyfriend along with you this time, okay?" Kanae giggled. Yako looked at Neuro in the corner of her eye, who was still asleep.

"Don't worry I won't -and for the last time, he's not my boyfriend!"

* * *

Yako raced down the dark, deserted streets to the location Kanae had said they'd meet. In her rush to get out of the apartment and not to take any chances in having Neuro wake up, she hadn't bothered to change out of her pajamas, which were a tank top and flannel pants. She was freezing, tired and breathing started to become a chore as she ran, but she didn't care. A second wasted stopping to catch her breath and try to warm herself was a second less she had with Kanae, who hadn't stressed enough that she hadn't had much time to talk as it was. She had to hurry, and to do that she had to ignore her burning lungs and the cold biting at her skin.

Finally, turning one, last corner, she spotted her, standing under a streetlight and looking at her cell phone. She was alive and clearly she hadn't come to any visible harm.

"KANAE!" Yako cried, despite her gasps for breath, as she rushed to her friend's side, falling into her outstretched arms that were ready to catch her exhausted body. "Kanae! I was so worried, you have no idea!"

"I'm sorry, Yako, I should have told you." Kanae apologized, hugging Yako as she cried.

"You're so stupid! You're stupid for just leaving like that!" Yako sobbed, although despite what she said she embraced her friend as well, in fear that, if she let go, she'd vanish again.

"I know, I know." Kanae softly whispered, waiting for Yako to cry herself out.

"Where…Where were you all this time!?" Yako sniffled, wiping her eyes.

"I was just with a client, that's all. It's a person that Godai wouldn't approve of me working with, so I decided it was best not to let him know." Kanae explained. "I'm a big enough girl that I can plan my own work schedule without his looking over my shoulder."

"Oh? Who's the client?" Yako asked, curiously, huddling close to Kanae to keep herself warm.

"Her name is Hime- she's treated me well over the last week." Kanae sighed. "Even so, the job she gave me was a bit difficult. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do it so easily."

"What job?"

"To get her the Ultimate Mystery." Yako froze, a shiver running up her spine as Kanae spoke, her voice lower and more sinister sounding than before. Her arms she had wrapped around Yako began to slowly tighten their hold on her.

"Kanae!" Yako gasped, looking up to see her friends face begin to warp into something terrifying. Drool freely flowed from her open mouth as fangs replaced normal human teeth and her eyes became lifeless and yellow, widening and slanting as her face began to stretch outward.

"NO! Kanae, stop, you have to fight it!" Yako begged, trying to pull out of her grip. "You can't turn into a demon, you can't!" Frantically, she finally freed herself from Kanae's arms just as it felt she was getting the air squeezed from her lungs. Falling to the cement, she looked up in horror as the transformation continued. Kanae's face now resembled some sort of horse, her hair growing long over her eyes and back. Her body began to slowly grow in size, ripping her clothes, until she towered over Yako, bearing a sharp-toothed, twisted grin. Sickly green webbing grew between her fingers as her nails became drill-like claws. Yako watched in silent horror, her mouth and eyes wide in terror as her friend she was once happy to finally see became a monster she was afraid to look at.

"K…Ka…" Yako stammered, fear paralyzing her arms and legs as the creature fell down on all fours, it's massive webbed hands slamming down on both sides of her, claws easily digging into the cement. The creature's long tongue swept around its lips before hanging out of it's mouth as it panted like a dog. "Ka…na…e…" Yako squeaked, tears of fear running down her cheeks. "Kanae, please…" The creature once known as Kanae didn't seem to understand or care as it lifted one of it's clawed hands, ready to rake it's claws down Yako's body and slice her to bloody ribbons. "KANAE! STOP!" Expecting the worse, she gasped, squeezing her eyes shut and bracing herself as the creature began it's attack. But, as she screamed, she heard the creature growl in frustration and leap away from her. At first she thought the creature had actually understood, but as she opened her eyes she found Neuro standing before her, looking back at her, annoyed.

"You certainly didn't understand what I said by not wandering off on your own, didn't you, worm?" He hissed. The snarling creature drew his attention away from her as he began to slip off one of his gloves.

"Another stupid human possessed by a lazy demon. Humans certainly can't resist mutating themselves to do a demon's bidding, can they?" He scoffed, removing his glove completely. Yako gasped as a gigantic, clawed hand emerged, each finger nothing but long, sword-like, razor-sharp claw. Even as fear was interfering with her process of thought, she knew exactly what he was going to do next, and it was something she'd seen him do before: Effortlessly kill whatever stood before him -in this case Kanae.

"STOP!" Yako cried, finding the strength to lift herself up and block Neuro's path, her vision blurred by tears. "DON'T KILL KANAE!"

"That thing is no longer your friend." Neuro told her, angrily. "Not a single bit of her exists inside that monster, and it will rip through you while you stand here trying to protect it like an idiot."

"NO! I WON'T LET YOU!" Yako screamed, stretching out her arms. "THERE HAS TO BE A WAY TO CHANGE HER BACK!"

"Even if there was, I wouldn't spare her. Something weak enough to fall prey to a demon doesn't deserve to live- now get out of the way!"

"I SAID NO!" Yako shrieked just as the demon behind her began to charge. The ground below her feet shook, but she refused to budge. She didn't know what to fear more, the demon at her back, coming to kill her, or the demon in front of her, ready to kill her best friend.

"PLEASE!" She begged. "STOP!"

"I can't." Was all Neuro said before he easily pushed her out of his way, face to face with the monster that was once Yako's closest companion.

"No!" Yako gasped, whirling around just in time to see Neuro deal his first and final blow. Dodging the creatures massive clawed hand, he jamming his own clawed hand into it's soft underbelly, allowing the monster to make the gash bigger and wider itself as it continued to blindly change forward. Blood wildly flew from the wound Neuro had created with ease, and after taking a few staggering steps away from him, the monster collapsed, it's innards spilling onto the ground as it topped over.

"K…K…KANAE!" Yako exclaimed, hands over her mouth as she screamed. The fallen beast's form morphed once more, shrinking back to the form of Kanae, her insides still littering the ground where she lay, her eyes wide open in horror and mouth agape as blood flowed from it. In desperation, Yako unsteadily ran over to her, only to stop dead in her tracks and look away from her friend's mangled body. The very sight made her queasy as a flood of tears fell from her eyes. There was nothing she could do, not any more. She was gone.

Falling to her knees onto the blood soaked street, Yako began to cry hysterically, burying her face in her hands as she cried loudly into the cold night air. Hunched over her friend's body, she could clearly smell the putrid smell of blood, and she gagged as she sobbed.

"You should be quiet, you'll attract unwanted attention," Neuro told her from behind. Yako straightened up, her expression changing from sorrow to anger as she whirled around to glare up at Neuro, who was slipping his glove back on, hiding is blood-covered claws from view.

"HOW COULD YOU!?" She screamed.

"Did I not say there was nothing I could do?" Neuro snarled back. "Death was her only option at that point."

"SHUT UP! NO IT WASN'T!" Yako shrieked. Neuro looked down at her as if she'd spat in his face.

"So you wanted me to just stand there and let it kill you?"

"YES!" Yako cried. "I don't want to be a part of this stupid game anymore! If they want this Ultimate Mystery so much they can take it! If living means I'll just see all of my friends die in front of me, I don't want any of this! I'd rather just let them kill me!"

"The loss of your friend is causing you to act-"

"I DON'T CARE! You want this stupid thing that's inside me, don't you!? Kill me and take it, I don't want to be apart of this any more! At least in death I'll be able to be with my friend and away from all of you!" Neuro remained silent, watching Yako cry. "KILL ME!"

"You're species is certainly a cowardly one, but you've surely outdone yourself." He finally spoke. "I do find the treasure inside you to be something I want, but if you're going to just lie down and die like a pitiful maggot, you certainly won't be worth my time." He turned his back to her as she sobbed. "If you want to leave this world so much, then you certainly won't need me. A day without anyone protecting you and you'll certainly get your cowardly wish. I refuse to waste my time on such a creature like yourself."

"WAIT!" Yako sobbed, but before she even finished, he was gone, leaving behind familiar purple feathers in his place that slowly floated to the ground. Yako began to cry again, shakily turning to Kanae's body just in time to watch it, and the blood around her, dry up and dissolve into dust.

"KANAE!" She cried, clutching a clump of it as the rest was swept up in the wind and blown away. Even the particles she'd managed to gather began to sift through her fingers, leaving her completely and utterly alone, pitifully hunched over as she cried.

Yako wanted nothing more to stay there, huddled in the middle of the empty road where her fallen friend once lay. But time passed by despite her wants, and she was forced to return to her empty apartment. She'd cried what felt like every tear she had, leaving her empty and dry. It was as if all of her emotions had been swept away with Kanae's ashes, leaving her as an empty husk. As she stumbled among the early morning crowds she wanted nothing more than for a demon to leap from the shadows and swallow her up, something she had once feared. She wanted to escape all of it, and she was sure she'd be happier in death.

She finally found her way back to her apartment, and within its' walls her loneliness seemed to become personified as she sank to the floor, her legs no longer having the will to carry her. She stared down at the floor, becoming almost catatonic as the seconds, minuets and hours flowed together. Before she knew it, the new day had become night again, but still she'd hardly moved.

The ringing of her cell phone in her pajama pocket finally brought her around. Pathetically, she found herself believing it was Kanae on the other line and that everything had been a twisted dream, but it wasn't the case. Another familiar name revealed itself on the screen- one she hadn't expected to see. Someone she had hardly spoken to since high school.

"H…Higuchi?" She answered. Higuchi had been another one of her high school friends who was probably one of Kanae's first fans before she actually got into modeling. He'd usually go wherever they went, but he was more of an acquaintance to Yako that an actual friend.

"Yako, hey…" He sounded like he was being extra careful about what he said, "I…I heard about what happened to Kanae… they haven't found her yet, have they?" The very mention of Kanae's name brought fourth tears she was sure had run dry before. Holding the phone close to her she cried, unable to form words at all.

"Y-Yako!" Higuchi exclaimed, fumbling for words as Yako sobbed into the receiver. "I'm… I'm sorry I…" He paused as Yako continued to cry. "Do… do you want some company right now… I'm near where Kanae said your apartment was and-"

"Yes." Yako cut him off between sobs. He definitely wouldn't replace Kanae, and he most definitely wouldn't be able to bring her back. But the last thing she wanted was to be alone. "…please."

"Alright, just hang on, I'll be right there." He told her and hung up, leaving her to listen to a dial tone as she continued to cry.

"Kanae…"

* * *

Light filtering through her open blinds awoke Yako. She could feel the bags under her eyes, and her entire body felt as if it were made of lead. Her head began to pound in pain as her home phone rang. Rolling over she found she was on her couch, a blanket from her bed thrown over her. And on the floor next to her was Higuchi, huddled on the carpet with nothing at all, his glasses pushed up onto his forehead.

"Yako, where are you?" Godai's voice called after her voicemail picked up the call. "Don't you dare pull what you pulled yesterday- get you're ass down here or there will be hell to pay, you got it!?" A loud clack announced he had angrily hung up. Sitting up, she looked to the window. She was going nowhere as she was, crying to Higuchi all night long and staying locked inside her apartment.

She wanted to be free, and the only way to do it would be to put herself in harms way and leave. After all, Kanae was waiting.


	4. Coward

"WHERE HAVE YOU _BEEN_!?" Godai bellowed as Yako wandered into the studio. Everyone around him backed away, as if, in his rage, he would hurt one of them. "YOU COMPLETELY BLOW OFF COMING TO WORK YESTERDAY, AND TODAY YOU'RE_ LATE_!"

"I'm sorry," Yako muttered, looking away from her enraged boss as if he would turn her to stone if she dared to gaze into his eyes.

"'Sorry' isn't going to cut the fact we're behind after you decided to take a fucking vacation!" Godai hissed, walking toward her. Yako could feel herself instinctively tensing up as if she was expecting for him to smack her. "It's bad enough our best model decided to up and leave us -you certainly don't have the luxury to!"

"I said I was sorry…" Yako told him, slowly looking up from the floor to him. "But…every minute you spend scolding me, couldn't we be doing the photo shoot?" Godai fell silent, mouth agape as if he was readying another swarm of harsh insults. Instead he groaned in frustration, turning his back to her.

"Just get ready!" He snapped. "_Quickly_!" Yako nodded, walking to the dressing room where several outfits were laying out for her. Heaving an exhausted sigh, she leaned over the counter and looked at herself in the mirror. She was expecting to be attacked as soon as she stepped out of her apartment, but she had managed to walk all the way to the agency without trouble. She wanted to be disappointed, but something inside her was relieved, and it bothered her.

"Don't you want this to be over?" She asked her reflection.

_"I refuse to waste my time on such a cowardly creature like yourself."_

"Um…Miss Yako…" One of the employees called from outside, knocking on the door. "I hate to rush you, but Godai's starting to get angry."

"Right, sorry!" Yako called. "I'll be right there…" She turned back to her reflection one last time.

"I'm not a coward." She whispered to herself before turning away to get changed. "I'll show you I'm not a coward."

"Alright, common, common, let's not waste any more time!" Godai barked as soon as Yako took a step back into the studio. Making sure not to trip or do anything that would incur Godai's wrath (Which was pretty much anything at that point) she hurried to the set as Godai continued to shout orders. She was hardly given any time to breath before the photo shoot began. The entire time she waited for Godai to stop everything, again, and tell her she was doing it all wrong. That was the norm- there wasn't a shoot that didn't have Godai getting angry with her. So, with every shot that was taken that Godai didn't even make a sound, Yako couldn't help but feel worried something was terribly wrong.

"That's a wrap for this one!" The cameraman called. Yako slowly let out the long breath she had been holding in the entire shoot. Looking to Godai, confused, she waited for him to tell her something- anything. Godai not shouting at her after every pose she did happened so often, it had been her comfort zone. The fact he had nothing to say to her didn't seem right.

"Um…Godai…" Yako couldn't help but say as she walked passed him to go change.

"What?" Godai asked her icily, turning his gaze -but not his face- to her.

"Um…er…it's nothing, I just…" Yako shook her head. "Never mind!"

The rest of the shoots were all the same, and time flew by as a single word hadn't escaped Godai's lips. It was hard to tell just by his expression what exactly was going on, since he always seemed to be angry, even when Kanae had modeled for him. Yako tried her hardest to pay the fact she wasn't being given earfuls on her posture no mind and chalked it up to the fact that Godai was convinced they had so little time, there wasn't even any time to yell at her.

"Okay! That's a wrap!" Someone called out from the darkness of the studio as the spotlights over Yako and the set dropped and the overhead lights were flicked on.

"Good job, everyone." The cameraman said, looking over to Yako, nodding in approval. Yako looked back at him blankly before shaking her head and walking back to the dressing room feeling like she had just run a marathon. Something about today exhausted her, and she couldn't put her finger on why.

"Yako!" Godai called as Yako was making a break for the exit. She immediately went ridged, slowly turning around to her boss and bracing herself for the worst.

"….Good job today…" He told her, like he was embarrassed to say it. "Whatever you were doing today, please don't forget about it for tomorrow." Yako looked at him, speechless, looking around the room for any indication him telling her something positive wasn't some sort of candid camera prank.

"Um…I will…" She told him, nodding slowly.

"If you don't, there will be hell to pay!" Godai snapped, back to his old, angry self as he turned and walked away before Yako could say anything else. She stood there for a moment, basking in the glow of the fact Godai had actually told her she had done a good job. She couldn't help but have a smile grow on her face.

"Yako!" Another familiar voice called. Turning around she saw Higuchi, waving at her from the agency front doors. Still smiling she waved back, hurrying over to him.

"You left without waking me up, so I was worried." He told her as the two of them walked out to the street.

"I'm sorry. I was late for work, and you looked so peaceful." Yako apologized. "Thanks for last night."

"No, it was my pleasure, really!" He told her, blushing and averting his gaze. "It's the least I could do for a friend." He paused for a moment, as if he were gathering up the courage to say something else. "Do…do you need me to stay another night?" Yako lightly laughed, shaking her head.

"I think I'll be fine now, thanks." She told him. As an afterthought she brought her arms around him, bringing him into a friendly hug.

"Y-Y-Yako!" Higuchi gasped.

"Thanks again for everything." She smiled, stepping back.

"M…" Higuchi began to say as she turned to leave. "Maybe we can…I don't know…if you want we could…next time we…"

"Maybe." Yako chuckled, looking over her shoulder. "I'll think about it." And, with that said, she turned around, morphing into the rest of the busy crowds heading for home.

"I'm sorry, Higuchi," Yako thought to herself. "There may not even be a next time."

* * *

"Again?" Yako thought aloud as she walked into her apartment. Again, she'd managed to get from one place to another without anything happening, and again she found herself feigning disappointment to herself. She wanted to sigh with relief- the very thought of being attacked by a demon frightened her. But this was what she wanted, right? She wanted to be freed from being some sort of game to demons, didn't she? Back when she had told it to Neuro she had been, but now she couldn't help but feel unsure about her decision and a paralyzing fear about being killed.

"Maybe Neuro was right," She told herself, flopping onto her bed. "Maybe I am just a big coward." She stared up at the ceiling, half expecting to see him staring back at her with the same, belittling stare. Something about those frightening green eyes watching her and knowing they were there before he had left her made her feel almost at ease. Now all she felt was dread that no one was there, making sure she was safe.

"Stupid," she shook her head, rolling onto her stomach, pressing her face against the sheets. Why did she miss him so much? All he ever did was talk down to her- he didn't even care about her! All he cared about was that she had something he wanted; he was just guarding his treasure, he wasn't guarding her.

A loud knock against her window brought her back to reality as she quickly lifted her head. At first, she thought she was just imagining things, but when the noise came again a feeling of excitement welled up in her chest. She rolled off of her bed and drew her curtain that was covering the window.

"Neuro!" She exclaimed, only to find the opposite. There, at her window, was a misshapen form of a demon, licking it's lips at the sight of her. In the darkness, it was hard to make out what exactly it was- it's frightening features hidden in shadow. The only thing that she could clearly see were it's red, glowing eyes looking at her through the glass, hungrily.

"No!" Yako gasped as the demon's clawed hand broke through the glass, it's hideous shriek leaking into the room as it pushed it's way through her window. Yako slowly backed away, quivering. Why was she doing this? She had told Neuro she wanted to die, that was what she wanted! Why was she so frightened to die? Running into a wall, she cried in terror as the shadowy creature slowly approached her, leaving a trail of drool behind it. She could smell it's rancid breath and in the faint glow of the moonlight from outside she could see it's jagged teeth gleaming from inside it's wide open mouth, ready to take a bite.

"I… I don't want to die…" Yako murmured, slowly sliding down the wall as tears of fright blurred her vision. "I DON'T WANT TO DIE!" The demon's overpowering shriek drowned out her cries as it lunged, claws out and ready to tenderize it's prey.

"NEURO!"

Blood flew through the air, landing on and staining the carpet. Yako gasped, opening her eyes she had squeezed shut to see she was unharmed and the blood that had splattered against her body wasn't hers.

"Heh, you're more of a coward than I thought," chuckled a voice. She quickly looked up to see Neuro, only to realize he'd caught the blow that originally was meant for her and the shadowy demon's claws were buried in his stomach. A crimson trail of blood seeped from his mouth as he looked back at her.

"Neuro!" Yako exclaimed in shock, hands over her face. Neuro didn't seem to pay the injury any mind as he turned his eyes to the demon.

"Scum like you don't deserve something like the Ultimate Mystery." Neuro smirked as he revealed his clawed hand. "Having the nerve to even try is a foolish move on your part." Ripping himself out of the grip of the demon's claws, he dug his own into the demons chest, right over it's heart. Blood quickly seeped from the wound, dying Neuro's arm red as the body of the shadowy creature fell limp in his grasp, letting out one last, sputtering moan. Neuro lightly chuckled in his triumph, taking the carcass and carelessly throwing it out the window.

"N…Neuro-" Yako began, just as Neuro fell against the wall in exhaustion, sliding down to the floor and leaving a trail of blood on his way down. Gasping, she ran to his side, dropping down to inspect his wounds before he slapped her shivering hands away.

"The wound should heal on its' own, so don't try doing unnecessary things, worm," He grunted, slipping on his glove he'd taken off, once again concealing his frightening claws. Turning back to Yako, he saw she had tears in her eyes a split second before she threw herself forward, hugging him. "What are you-!" He snapped, cut off by Yako's crying as she buried her face against his shoulder. He looked down at her in surprise for a moment before groaning and allowing her to cry.

"Thank you…" She lightly sobbed, arms still tightly around him.

"Don't thank me, worm, I wasn't doing it for you." Neuro groaned, expecting her to respond. After a short moment of silence he glanced down to see she had fallen asleep still clinging to him, exhausted from crying. Looking at her blankly, he sighed, wiping a stray tear from her cheek.

"Good night, coward."

* * *

Yako woke up the next morning on her bedroom floor to the sound of running water.

"Neuro?" She moaned, slowly sitting up. Her room lit by the glow of the morning sun, she could now clearly see the mess of blood that had been left behind on the floor and walls. The gruesome mess almost made her want to go back to sleep and try to pretend it wasn't there, but the thought of what Godai would do to her motivated her to stagger upward, despite the sickening mess- as it stood, his anger was probably just as frightening as any demon.

Stumbling to the bathroom, she opened the door, only to be greeted by a cloud of steam and the sound of the shower running that had woken her up. Looking around she spotted Neuro's bloody clothes thrown haphazardly into the sink, and the next thing her eyes darted to was the shower. Standing under the cascade of water, totally oblivious to the fact she was there, was Neuro. Gasping, she quickly turned around, slamming the door behind her in a panic. Blushing like mad, she could feel her heart trying to beat its' way out of her chest. She stood outside the bathroom, trying to get the image of what she had just seen out of her mind.

"What are you doing down there, louse?" Neuro asked, walking out of the bathroom. Yako had slid to the floor and had her face buried in her hands. She jumped, looking up to see him, now fully clothed and drying off his hair. Feeling a blush cross her face she quickly stood up, scampering around him.

"Nothing!" She quickly said before shutting and locking the door. She palmed her face, still unable to get the embarrassing blush off of her face. It was definitely going to be a long day, but little did she know that seeing Neuro in the shower was going to be the least of her worries that day.

* * *

"You're acting stranger than usual, worm," Neuro mentioned as he followed behind Yako.

"I'm not," Yako shouted over her shoulder. "I'm just a little tired, that's all."

"If you were tired, you wouldn't be walking so fast," Neuro told her. "I doubt exhaustion is what's wrong with you."

"Look, I-" Yako groaned, turning around. But as soon as she did, the din of the crowd around them suddenly vanished, leaving behind an almost painful silence. The light of the sun disappeared, and was replaced by a violet glow. Everyone besides her and Neuro seemed to have vanished.

"What…what's going on!?" Yako exclaimed, looking around. "Neuro, what's happening!"

"This is a possessed space," Neuro explained to her, his voice seeming unmoved. He did, however, have a serious look on his face, and shifted his gaze from side to side, clearly looking for something. "It's a separate dimension from the human world that demons can conjure up. It keeps other humans from getting unnecessarily involved in their schemes." From the silence, Yako could hear footsteps behind her. "Which means she's here."

"Who's she?" Yako asked, whirling around to see a young girl dressed head to toe in clothes that would suit royalty approaching them, holding an umbrella over her head. She looked at the two of them happily, but her smile seemed twisted and evil and her eyes looked hungry.

"You must be the lazy demon who's been sending humans to do her dirty work," Neuro scoffed.

"And you must be the troublesome little demon who's been thwarting my plans," the girl responded, closing her umbrella. "And after all the work I did to recruit all those loyal subjects -I guess even when you lend them your power they're no match for an actual demon."

"Wait." Yako gasped. "Are you… Hime?"

"Oh, did your little friend mention me?" Hime giggled, pressing her fingers to her lips as her shoulders shook as she laughed. "It was quite sad to loose such a good servant- she was more than willing to turn herself into a creature for me. I was so sure using your best friend would be a success."

"You-" Yako began, walking towards her only to have Neuro stop her.

"Don't do anything stupid. She's stronger than any of the other demons that have come after you." He warned. "But… Even so, she's still not worthy of the Ultimate Mystery- not by a long shot."

"Oh, and a former dog to Satan is?" Hime snapped. "Something as powerful as the Ultimate Mystery is only befitting of royalty, not some mangy little peasant like you." She held out her umbrella, a long, pointed needle sliding from the tip as she sliced the air around her with it. "It's best I cut you to tiny bits before you defile it even more."

"You'll be the one to defile it, Hime," Neuro sneered, taking off both gloves with his teeth to reveal two sets of massive claws. "Someone who thinks they're entitled to something just because of status doesn't deserve anything at all."

"We'll see who does and who doesn't deserve anything, little Neuro," Hime smirked. "But I'm quite sure, out of anyone, you don't deserve anything most of all."


	5. Princess

With blinding speed, Hime charged at the two of them, holding her umbrella like a lance. Before Yako even had time to gasp, Neuro had pushed her out of her weapons path, narrowly managing to catch the needle between his claws, the tip inches away from his face.

"If you're so intent on not letting anyone else get the Ultimate Mystery, why haven't you just consumed it already?" Hime grinned, "Don't tell me you actually care for that stupid, little girl."

"I care more about keeping it away from anyone else," Neuro scoffed. "Watching all you pathetic demons try and fail is much more satisfying." He swiped his claws at her, pushing her and her weapon backwards.

"Do you really think it's wise to throw the word 'pathetic' around?" Hime hissed. "Especially since, last I checked, you were content being under your master's thumb." Glaring at her, it was Neuro's turn to lunge at her, slashing his claws through the air. With a mocking grin, Hime easily dodged his blow and simultaneously thrust her needle at him again, this time managing to open a wound in Neuro's side.

"What's the matter, Neuro?" Hime mocked. "Can't fight well unless someone orders you to?" Neuro turned to her, green eyes glowing with rage as he angrily continued his attack. Hime easily side-stepped each of them with ease with a greater-than-thou smile plastered to her face.

A scream rang through the air, causing Neuro to halt his attack. He came to find Yako, surrounded by a hoard of Hime's possessed minions.

"NEURO!" She cried in fear over the creature's growls and shrieks.

"Ya-!" Neuro gasped as a sharp pain bloomed from his side. Looking down he came to find Hime had plunged her umbrella's needle deep into his body.

"What's wrong, Neuro, distracted?" She giggled, drawing out her weapon, allowing blood to freely flow from the wound she had created. Grasping at the throbbing gash in his side, Neuro could taste blood as it bubbled up from his throat and steadily pored from past his lips.

"You have nothing to worry about. My servants will only attack when I give them the order." Hime smirked, snapping her fingers. "And that was it." The crowd of demons roared loudly over another one of Yako's screams as they began to close in on her. Neuro didn't have time to think- he only had time to blindly charge forward towards them and her. In his hurry he felt Hime's needle mar his arm as he passed, and he barely made out a triumphant smile on her face as blood flew from yet another, open wound. He had no time to retaliate -his focus was on the seconds slipping by that he had left to protect Yako.

Within the crowd of demons, Yako could do nothing but brace herself and scream. A split second before she was convinced she would die, the sound of flesh being torn open and the hoard of creature's cries and shouts of pain rang through the air. Slowly opening on of her eyes, she peered through her hands that were shielding her face. Neuro stood before her, the copses of her attackers littering the ground around them. Neuro looked a bit worse for wear himself, his own blood flowing from his side and arm.

"Neuro, you-" Yako gasped.

"It's your fault for being such a burden, worm," Neuro panted.

"Feeling tired, little Neuro?" Hime asked with a grin, carelessly stepping on the fallen bodies of her dead servants as she approached them. "It must be exhausting to have to care for such a defenseless weakling."

"You're one to talk, using your mind slaves to help you get the upper hand." Neuro snapped back. "You're just-" Neuro's vision suddenly began to double and blur, cutting off whatever he was about to say. A feeling of breathlessness overcame him as he lost his footing as he dropped to one knee.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I forget to mention?" Hime laughed. "The tip of this needle is dripping with poison. I've perfected it to the point where it can stun even the strongest of demons. I guess I should have warned you, but I couldn't help wanting to see you down at my feet where you belong!" She cackled loudly as Neuro unsteadily rose back to his feet.

"Only a coward would use something as petty as a poison." He spat.

"It's so cute the way you still continue to down-talk me when you're the loser here." She smiled. "Someone like you needs to be taught their place."

"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing." Neuro smirked, despite his condition. "You certainly deserve to be knocked off your high horse."

"Then why don't you have at it, then?" Hime asked with a grin. "Come and try if you think that's what I deserve!" Neuro growled, nearly loosing his balance as he charged at her, his blow from his claws easily blocked by the needle on her umbrella. His second blow was easily dodged as she kicked him in the gut, sending him skidding away.

"Neuro, you have to stop!" Yako shouted. "If you keep on fighting her you could-"

"Do you think I have any other choice, idiot?" Neuro snapped, not bothering to turn and look at her. "And what did I say about giving me orders!?"

"You should listen to her, Neuro, why not just give up?" Hime cackled. "A demon should value their own life above anyone else's." A satisfied grin stretched across her lips. "Or have you grown soft and actually care for that little insect?"

"Wipe that stupid grin off your face before I do it for you!" Neuro growled, lunging at her again.

"Don't you know, Neuro!?" Hime asked with a smirk as she avoided each of Neuro's attacks with ease. "Once you actually care for someone else, you're just the same as a human!" Her weapon and Neuro's claws collided, sending sparks into the air. "You're nothing more than a lowly insect- as if you weren't already." She swung her umbrella, knocking Neuro's hand away and leaving him wide open. "And insects should be exterminated!" Taking her umbrella in both hands she rammed the needle through Neuro's chest, driving it clear through him. Wrenching it out of him as violently as she had plunged it in, she watched in amusement as Neuro folded his arms over his chest and fell to his knees.

Neuro could vaguely make out Yako crying out his name over the sound of his heart pounding in his ears.

"Now correct me if I'm wrong…" Hime chuckled darkly, standing over Neuro triumphantly. "But I remember you saying something to the effect of how amusing it was to watch demons fail to get the Ultimate Mystery for themselves, right?" She tilted her head playfully, pausing like she was waiting for him to answer. "I guess you were right- seeing you now truly_ is_amusing." Her eyes met Neuro's, who looked up her with rage in his eyes. "It will be even more amusing once you're dead, gone and fully out of my way." She readied her weapon to deal one last final blow to her opponent. "I'd ask if you had any last words, but I'm sick of hearing your voice."

Yako was unclear about what happened in the split second between when Hime raised her weapon and brought it down, but the next thing she knew, the umbrella was severed in two. The needle-bearing point of it clatted to the ground, the handle still clutched in Hime's hand.

"What?" Hime gasped, looking down at her wasted weapon. Before her stood Yako, two glowing green blades in hand.

"There's no way!" She growled. "Those are..." Hime's once proud smile morphed into as frustrated frown. "How could an insect like you summon a demon tool!?"

"What?" Yako looked to the two swords in her hands in amazement, but as soon as she acknowledged them, they disappeared.

"I guess the Ultimate Mystery can do more than I imagined," Hime snorted, smiling, but still looking angry. "It doesn't matter- you've practically offered yourself to me now, little girl." Lifting one of her hands, her nails morphed into black pointed claws. "That treasure inside you is mine now!" Yako gasped, flinching and squeezing her eyes shut.

"AAAAAAUGH!" She heard Hime scream as she felt someone pull her close. She opened her eyes again to see Neuro, standing up again, fresh blood on his claws and using his free hand to pull her close to him and away from Hime's attack. Hime on the other hand was doubling over in pain, her entire upper arm missing, and the bloody stump that remained bled profusely.

"Forget about me already, Hime?" Neuro asked coldly.

"IT HURTS!" Hime cried, eyes filled with panic and pain as she grasped at the remains of her arm. "IT HURTS!"

"Someone who's been raised as royalty, who hasn't had to lift a finger their entire life surely doesn't know a thing about pain." Neuro chuckled, letting go of Yako and stumbling over to Hime, who was slowly curling into a ball as she pathetically howled.

"MAKE IT STOP!" She wailed. "MAKE IT STOP!"

"I'll be more than happy to oblige, your highness." Neuro said with a sarcastic bow, relishing in Hime's cries and screams. "But before I do, there's something I want you to do for me." She slowly lifted her head, wide, frightened, tear-filled eyes looking up at him.

"I'LL DO ANYTHING!" She sobbed. "ANYTHING!" Neuro grinned widely, lifting his foot above her head.

"Lick my shoes, you pitiful insect." With a frightening look of glee, he brought his foot down against her face. Yako quickly turned her head as she heard the sickening sound of Hime's skull cracking against the pavement beneath Neuro's foot. It reminded her of someone smashing open a coconut overflowing with milk- a nice image to have, but she knew exactly what was just outside her line of vision.

"It was a pleasure serving you, your highness," Neuro chuckled, lifting his foot from the remains of Hime's head, shaking the blood and bits of brain from off his shoe as he slipped his gloves back on, his claws now of no use to him.

A strong wind blew through the empty, purple world Hime had trapped them in as the fallen bodies of her servants disintegrated into dust, along with their master. Violently swirling around them for a moment, the particles were blown away and out of sight, leaving Neuro and Yako in silence again. Yako turned to Neuro just in time to see him loose his footing and fall to the pavement. Gasping, she ran to his side, kneeling down, pulling him up and lifting his arm over her shoulder.

"We should leave this place," Neuro groaned weakly, head hanging low to the ground. "Hime's possessed space won't last for much longer now that she's gone." Yako gave the weakened demon a worried look, but silently agreed as she stood up, struggling under his weight as she headed in the direction of her apartment.

"I'm sorry, Godai," She thought to herself. "I'm going to have to call in sick today."

* * *

"Yes, yes, I know!" Neuro heard Yako groan as he slowly came to. "It's just -I ran into some family problems… No, I can't… I'll work extra hard tomorrow, I…" He slowly sat up, finding himself on Yako's couch, a sheet draped over him. Yako was on the other side of the room, talking to her angry boss, whose voice could be clearly heard, even from where he was sitting. Yako sighed, holding the phone away from her face as Godai continued to shout.

"Look, I said I was sorry, it won't happen again!" She muttered. Godai grumbled something before loudly hanging up the phone. Yako flinched, looking at the phone with an annoyed look as she slowly set it down. She took a long breath before turning around, a smile growing on her face to see Neuro was alright.

"You're up," She said happily, walking over to the couch. "I thought you'd be out longer." Neuro looked up at her with a bothered look across his face.

"Do you honestly think I'm that much of a weakling?" He asked her, trying to push himself up and off the couch, only to have a sharp pain in his chest keep him from doing so.

"You shouldn't move- your wounds are still healing!" Yako stressed. Neuro looked down to find she'd managed to take off his shirt and wrap his injuries in bandages.

"You didn't have to wrap them. I can heal without bandages," Neuro told her coldly.

"I know but…" Yako looked down, looking ashamed. "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have been hurt so much. I felt like I had to do something…" Yako sighed, looking defeated. "I'm sorry. Hime was right, I'm a burden." Neuro stared up at Yako in silence for a moment before finally speaking up.

"You_ ARE_a burden…" He began, pausing just so he could watch her face as she grew even more disheartened. "But during the battle, you managed to slice Hime's umbrella clean in half with a weapon humans shouldn't even be able to use. You have the Ultimate Mystery to thank for that, I suppose." He looked at Yako expectantly. "Maybe if I can help you control that power-" He was cut off by Yako, who had thrown her arms around him, which was hurting him more than she knew.

"Thank you!" he cheered. "I won't let you down!"

"Okay, okay, just get off of me!" Neuro hissed. "Weren't you the one who was concerned about my wounds in the first place, worm!?"

* * *

"Alright, people, that's a wrap!" Godai shouted as the cameraman took the final shot. Yako sighed in relief, taking a seat on one of the surrounding props. Thanks to her absence the other day, Godai had her come in extra early and work more than just over time. She never expected to stand around looking pretty could be so overpowering. Stretching her tired limbs, she looked to Godai to see if he had any sharp words he'd like to add.

"Good work today," was all he said, like he was disappointed he didn't get to critique her about her modeling. Smiling, Yako got up and headed for the changing room, only to find Neuro was there, waiting for her.

"You could at least wait outside while I change," Yako groaned.

"And we've seen how well that works out, haven't we, worm?" Neuro smirked. Yako sighed in defeat, turning around and trying to pretend Neuro wasn't there as she slipped off the dress she had been modeling and changed back into her usual clothes. Turning around she came to find Neuro standing right in front of her, holding a box out to her.

"What…is that?" she asked, suspiciously. Knowing Neuro, she had every right to be a little afraid of what it might be.

"Just open it," Neuro commanded, dropping it into her hands. Yako inspected the box from the outside first. It didn't seem too heavy, and whatever was inside wasn't moving; It seemed harmless enough. She slowly opened the lid, still half expecting it to be some sort of sick joke Neuro had planned. But, instead of a gruesome surprise, inside was a strange little trinket: it looked like a pair of red grinning lips parting to expose sharp teeth.

"It's a hairclip." Neuro told her after she had studied it for a while. "It has a tracker on it, so no matter where you go, I'll know where you are." The fact Neuro would know where she was at all time was a bit on the creepy side, and the hairclip wasn't exactly what she would call tasteful, but it was still a nice thought: something Neuro didn't generate often.

"Thanks." Yako smiled, turning to the mirror to take out the bobby pins in her hair and replace them with the clip. She didn't want to say it, but it did suit her now that it was in her hair.

"Are you done admiring yourself in the mirror, worm?" Neuro asked impatiently. Sighing, Yako fixed her hair clip a bit more before turning to Neuro.

"Yeah, I'm done. Let's go home."

* * *

"So this is where you've been hiding, Neuro." The black haired girl looked over the city, her single braid blowing in the breeze. "No matter where you go, I'll follow. Nothing will ever tear us apart."


	6. Jealousy

Yako awoke with a start to the feeling of someone leaping onto her bed. Fearing it was another demon come to try and kill her, she quickly sat up right, ready to scream. However, instead of another demon, she came to find it was only Neuro looking back at her, their faces dangerously close to one another.

"Neuro!" She gasped.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you usually running around getting ready for that stupid job of yours by now?" He asked. "Or are you just going to laze around in bed all day?"

"I do have days off, you know?" She groaned, backing up so they were farther apart. "But I guess, with you around, I can't even enjoy sleeping in."

"Watching you snore and drool in your sleep starts to get boring after a while, worm." He told her. "You can't expect me to just sit around for so long."

"Well, now I'm up. Happy?" She asked wearily.

"I have been waiting for you to get up for some time." Neuro grinned. "Now that you're awake, I can leave."

"Leave!? Leave where?"

"What, are you scared to be left alone?" He asked, mockingly. Yako glared at him before turning away as she got out of her bed.

"Fine, leave, I don't care." She muttered, looking over to find that Neuro had already let himself out. She didn't want to admit it, but she was a bit uneasy about being left alone. Sure, she hadn't been attacked for a short while since the incident with Hime, but the fact she hadn't was only making her more paranoid. But if she had told Neuro she didn't want him to leave, he would have just mocked her before leaving anyway.

"You'll be fine," She told herself, shaking her head as she got up. Trying to take her mind off the fact Neuro was gone and had left her totally defenseless, she walked into the bathroom, picking up the hairclip Neuro had given her. It had slowly started to become something of a security blanket since, according to Neuro, it allowed him to keep tabs on her at all times so he could leave her on her own. A sudden knock came from the door just as she clipped the accessory in its' usual place.

"Neuro?" She asked herself. She wasn't expecting anyone else, but if it was, it was certainly out of character for him to bother to use her door. Confused, she walked to the door, throwing it open only to have someone bowl into her and wrap their arms around her.

"Neuro!" An excited voice cheered as Yako was almost knocked to the floor. Narrowly catching herself, Yako gasped in panic. Attached to her waist was a girl who didn't look any older than a high schooler with a long, black pigtail and a blue and black uniform she didn't recognize. Seconds into the surprise embrace, the girl jumped in surprise as she looked up at Yako. The happy smile that had once adorned her features quickly morphed into a disgusted frown.

"Oh…You're not Neuro." She grunted, pushing away from Yako and almost knocking her down again.

"Who are you!?" Yako asked -Though whoever she was, she was obviously looking for Neuro. The girl didn't bother to answer at first as she dusted off her dress, like hugging Yako had gotten it dirty.

"Why should I tell you?" The girl snapped back, hands on her hips. "I'd rather die than introduce myself to an insect like you…" Pausing, she stared at Yako, slowly inching forward.

"Hey, what are you-?" Yako began to ask as the girl quickly grasped at Yako's hairclip and yanked it out along with a few strands of hair. Yako threw her hand over where the trinket had once been a second too late as the girl brought it to her nose, taking a few quick sniffs.

"This scent…" She said thoughtfully. "Is Neuro's…" An angry scowl pulled at her lips as she looked back to Yako hostilely. Before Yako could even think, the girl angrily swiped at her. Gasping, Yako managed to back up just in time for the girl's sharp nails to narrowly miss her face, but fell to the ground as a result.

"What have you been doing with my Neuro!?" She growled, chucking the hairclip to the floor. "Why do you smell so much like him!?"

"What have I been _doing_!?" Yako asked, confused. "I haven't been doing anything, he-" Before she could finish, the girl had already walked up to her, grasped the collar of Yako's shirt and pulled her up just slightly off the ground. Positioned directly over her, the girl pulled Yako up even more so they were face to face. Yako couldn't help but squeak in fear.

"Neuro belongs to me and only to me!" She shouted. "Any one else who dares try and take him from me deserves to be punished!" She raised her free hand, balling it into a fist. Crying out in fright, Yako squeezed her eyes shut and braced herself for her blow. But, to her surprise, a few very long seconds passed by without any sort of attack. She slowly opened her eyes to see Neuro, standing beside the girl, his hand tightly wrapped around her wrist.

"Well, you haven't changed a bit, Akane." He said calmly. The look of enraged hatred immediately faded from the girl's face as she let go of Yako and carelessly allowed her to fall back to the ground. She quickly twirled around to look at Neuro, a gigantic smile stretched across her lips.

"Ne-" She began, only to have both her happy smile and her hug ignored as he bent down to pick up the hair clip she had thrown to the ground.

"I'd like it if you didn't over-react and try to hurt this girl." Neuro told her without even bothering to look at her. She watched in utter shock as he knelt down to place the hairclip back in place in Yako's hair. "She's very special to me." Yako's mouth hung open is surprise as her face grew warm.

"S…Special…" The girl stammered, looking horrified.

"Neuro, who is this?" Yako finally asked, looking over his shoulder to the girl.

"This is Akane." Neuro explained, giving Yako room to get up on her own. "She-"

"What do you mean by special!?" Akane interrupted, looking panicked. "You couldn't possibly mean-"

"She's the Ultimate Mystery's container- or did you forget about it?" Neuro asked her sharply.

"Then why haven't you killed her already, then? What's the point of sticking around when you could just take it!?" She asked in a frustrated manner. Neuro groaned, looking annoyed.

"There's things someone like you won't be able to understand." Neuro told her. "You shouldn't be here anyways -you should return to hell."

"No!" Akane shouted. "I came here to see you! Don't you care at all? I did this all so we could be with each other!"

"Should I care when people do stupid things?" Neuro scoffed, raising an eyebrow. She looked back at him, looking close to tears. "I'll say it again: you should go back home. A younger demon like you doesn't stand a chance in this game."

"And you do!?" Akane yelled back. "I was worried about you, Neuro. After all, there are powerful demons after that stupid treasure, and you're just-" An angry glare from Neuro quickly cut her off as she flinched.

"Go home." Neuro repeated, turning away from her. Akane's head hung low, a look of defeat on her face.

"Could it be you're risking your life… because you like this girl!?"

"What!?" Yako finally spoke up. "You…you've got it all wrong, it's not like that! Me and Neuro aren't…he doesn't… I don't-"

"Then how do you feel about him, then!?" Akane snapped. "He's practically asking for death by protecting you, and you don't feel anything?" Yako looked up at her in shock. She'd never considered how she actually felt about Neuro. "Fighting for someone who isn't even grateful is just a waste of time!"

"I…I-" Yako began, only to have her phone ringing cut her off. "Excuse me!" She quickly ran passed Akane and Neuro, picking up the phone and feeling very glad to have been rescued from answering Akane's question.

"Hello?"

"Yako, we need you down at the studio_ NOW_!" It was Godai, sounding frantic.

"Now!? But it's my day off! Why-?"

"Look, I'll explain everything when you get here, but you're presence has been requested! So just get down here now, or else!" Before Yako could try and figure out what Godai meant, he'd already hung up.

"I have to go." Yako announced as she hung up the phone, passing the two demons again to get to the bathroom.

"Neuro, please… please come back with me! This whole stupid game you're playing is pointless!" Akane begged. "That girl is bound to die eventually, so what's the point of protecting her?"

"That girl is a lot more interesting that you think she is." Neuro told her. "And nothing you say or do is going to change my mind."

"Then I'm not going anywhere, either!" Akane snapped. "You're heart belongs to me and only me, and I'm not going to go back just so a stupid worm can squirm between you and me!" She shot an angry look at Yako, who had just stepped out of the bathroom after quickly applying makeup. "You hear me!? I won't loose to you, you stupid louse!" In a rage, she quickly turned and ran out the door, violently slamming it behind her.

"W…What was that about?" Yako asked.

"She'll probably be back- you should hurry." Neuro told her, tossing something to her. Barely catching it, Yako saw it was a bag from the local bakery.

"What's this?" She asked.

"Donuts, they're pretty good, I'll admit."

"You…you left just so you could buy yourself donuts?" Yako groaned. "You could have told me. I could have come with you." She turned around, only to gasp in shock at the sight of her shattered window.

"You broke my window again!?"

"What was I supposed to do? You locked it."

"Use the door!"

* * *

"She's here!" Someone within the studio shouted as Yako walked in, looking around confused at everyone as they frantically ran about the studio.

"How fitting, they're all running around like a bunch of frightened ants." Neuro chuckled under his breath.

"Leave it to you to make some sort of joke about insects." Yako groaned as Godai quickly ran up to them.

"Finally! How long were you intending to make us wait!?" He shouted over the din of the studio.

"I got here as quick as I could. What's going on!?"

"Oh, is this the model you told me about?" A soft, cheery voice asked. Yako looked over Godai's shoulder to see a woman slightly older than her with long, elegant, blond hair falling over her shoulders and kind eyes that looked right back at her.

"Yes, this is Yako!" Godai said with a forced smile. "Yako, I'm sure you've heard of Aya." Yako stared at him for a moment before shaking her head.

"I'm sorry, I haven't." Godai looked her like she'd just spat in his and the woman's face.

"You idiot, she's the number one song artist in Japan right now! Don't you have ears!?"

"It's quite alright, Mr. Godai. I'm sure not everyone has heard of me quite yet." Aya laughed. "Give the girl a break, especially since she came from her break to model." Godai bit his lip, forcing himself to stop his verbal assault.

"Your clothes are in the changing room!" Godai told her angrily. "Don't waste anymore time." He quickly ran off somewhere else to help with the set, leaving Yako alone. She looked to Aya, who was signing an autograph for one of the employees. She looked over to Yako, smiling.

"I'm sorry to have made you come here on such short notice. I heard this modeling agency was quite good, and I was looking for a place to shoot for my latest promo posters. I needed a second female model for them, and you seem to fit the bill just fine." She explained. "I hope we work well together."

"Umm…yeah!" Yako smiled, nodding just as a few more people asking Aya to sign things captured the older woman's attention. Yako looked up at Neuro, who was watching Aya closely.

"Neuro?"

"You should probably do as your boss said." He told her, heading in the direction of the changing rooms.

"Right." Yako nodded, looking back at Aya again.

'What was with that look Neuro was giving her?' She thought to herself.

* * *

"Aya, huh?" Yako said to herself as she slipped on the outfit Godai had laid out for her. "She seems like a pretty big deal- I'm surprised I never heard of her."

"You shouldn't be," said a familiar voice. Gasping, Yako looked up to see the reflection of Aya standing behind her in the mirror, a smile on her face.

"Ah! Miss Aya!" Yako exclaimed, spinning around to face her. "How did you get in?" She was surprised, since she'd somehow managed to slip past Neuro, which hardly ever happened.

"Through the door, of course." Aya chuckled, walking over to Yako. "My, you certainly do look beautiful in that dress. I definitely made the right choice." She stopped, an arm's length away from Yako as she reached out, pressed her hand against the mirror and the other on Yako's shoulder, as if keeping her from escaping. Yako gasped in surprise, unsure what in the world Aya was doing. "But, I want to make sure, just in case."

"Make…sure?" Yako asked, just as Aya leaned in and forcefully pressed her lips against Yako's, whose gasp of surprise was muffled by the kiss. Something about the way she kissed her seemed familiar…

"I had a feeling you weren't who you said you were." Yako gasped again, as a single razor-sharp claw suddenly became poised just inches away from Aya's throat. Neuro stood behind her, looking at her angrily.

"My, my, you certainly are a buzz-kill, aren't you?" Aya sighed, breaking the kiss. "You can't even let someone have a taste of the Ultimate Mystery, can you?" She straightened back up, Neuro's claw following close behind. "Or are you just mad because someone else kissed your precious little treasure?"

"No… You… You're-" Yako stammered.

"I was hoping to keep it a secret from you, Yako dear, but it seems the cat's out of the bag." Aya shrugged, looking calm despite Neuro's claws ready to piece her skin. "I'm a demon, and I'm here to take the Ultimate Mystery for myself." She sighed, looking over her shoulder to Neuro. "Rest assured, I'm not in a hurry to do so, so you can relax." Neuro didn't budge as he scowled at her. "I plan on having a little fun before I rid you of that troublesome treasure of yours." Aya cackled, just as the knob of the door began to turn. In a flash Neuro's claws were hidden within his gloves, and Aya's kind face re-appeared as one of the staff members peaked in.

"Miss Aya, Miss Yako, you're on soon." He said.

"Right," Aya nodded, smiling at him sweetly. Blushing, he smiled back and disappeared, shutting the door.

"I'll see you on set, little Yako." Aya sneered, waving as she turned and left.

"She…she…" Yako shook in fear. "I can't go out there, she'll-"

"You'll only make matters worse if you cower in here." Neuro told her coldly. "Aya has everyone under her spell, so sooner or later she'll have you dragged out of here. And if she tries anything I won't be very far." Yako looked down at her feet, still frightened, but nodded in agreement.

"Oh, and one other thing." He added, grasping her chin and pulling her head up to face his as he kissed her without a word. Yako squeezed her eyes shut, trying to struggle away. One kiss from a demon was enough. "I'm the only one who's going to obtain the Ultimate Mystery. Aya will just have to live with one tiny taste."


	7. Training

"That's a wrap people!" Someone called from the darkness as the lights above flickered on. Yako normally would relax after a photo shoot, but she was just as focused and nervous with the camera's being packed away. Aya's arm was still draped over her shoulder, and she could feel her looking at her hungrily from the corner of her eye.

"Fantastic job!" Godai cheered, unnatural smile on his face adding to the unnatural words coming out of his mouth.

"Thank you," Aya smiled kindly, finally relinquishing Yako from her grip as Godai and a few other employees swarmed around her.

"We should start leaving soon," Neuro urged her, morphing out of nowhere to her side.

"You don't have to tell me." Yako muttered, trying to shake off the icy feeling of fear still clawing its' way through her body. The entire shoot, Aya's eyes never once looked away from her, and Yako could only look back. Aya had been smiling, but there was something different written in her eyes that even the sweetest of smiles couldn't hide: she wanted to tear Yako apart, just like Hime.

"Yako!" Aya's sticky-sweet voice called out as she somehow managed to easily flow from the crowd that surrounded her. "Very good work today!" The smile she wore morphed into one that seemed much more sinister as she leaned over so the two of them were face to face. "I do hope we work together soon."

Yako froze in fear, only able to nod her head as she felt Aya tightly grip her hands. Aya's eyes suddenly darted upward to Neuro, who had stepped from behind Yako to give her a warning look. Aya's grin only grew more terrifying as she released Yako and stood up to face him.

"I do look forward to seeing you as well, Neuro," She told him in a hushed tone as she slowly backed away, back to her crowd of fans. "I can't wait to see the look on your face when I take what you're so sure belongs to you." She gave Yako one more frightening glance. "And then you'll wish you ripped it out of her when you had the chance."

Yako jumped in surprise as she felt Neuro tightly grasp her hand, still glaring at Aya angrily as she turned away. She gave one last amused chuckle, and walked back to the group of people still clamoring for her autograph.

"Neuro-" Yako was quickly cut off as she felt him yank her towards the changing room, and only let go of her hand once they were there.

"Neuro!" She repeated, having been trying to get his attention the entire way there. Neuro looked back at her, silently acknowledging her words. "I can't let you fight her on your own, like the last time!"

"I can fend for myself." Her told her coldly. "You should worry about yourself before you start wasting it on me."

"I _am_worried!" She loudly stated, turning her eyes to the floor as she lifted up her still quivering hands. "I'm terrified… but I'm more worried you'll get hurt trying to protect me."

"What can you possibly hope to do?" Neuro asked icily, turning around to face her with a withering gaze. "The only thing you have is a demon tool you can't even recall how to summon."

"I don't want you to get hurt because of me again!" Yako shouted. "The battle with Hime… All I could do was stand by while you were injured trying to save me. I don't want it to happen again!" Yako flinched at first, as if bracing herself for what Neuro would say next. The door suddenly flying open saved her from whatever sharp words he had ready.

"AH!" A familiar voice cried as the intruder fell to the floor. At their feet was Akane, face against the ground.

"Stupid door…" she muttered, getting to her knees, looking embarrassed. Yako couldn't help but notice a smirk appear on Neuro's lips.

"What are you doing h-?" Yako began to ask as Neuro cut her off.

"Akane, your timing couldn't have been more perfect." He grinned. "I need you to do something for me." Akane lifted her head, looking up at Neuro excitedly, like a dog who was promised a treat if she did a trick.

"Yes!?" She happily asked. Neuro chuckled, pointing to Yako. Following his finger, Akane's pleased expression immediately went sour as her eyes rested on her.

"By now you realize you can no longer summon Evil Blades, one of your signature demon tools, yes?" Yako felt a shiver run up her spine as Akane's expression only worsened. "The reason for that is that they've chosen a new master." As soon as Neuro told her the news, Yako had no time to escape as Akane leaped up and grasped her by the collar and ran her into the wall. Neuro watched the scene with amusement, not bothering to stop her assault.

"YOU!?" Akane shrieked, looking surprised and angry. "YOU'RE THE ONE WHO TOOK MY DEMON TOOL!?"

"I-I didn't mean to, I swear!" Yako cried, not sure if she was afraid of Akane or ruining the outfit from the shoot more.

"First my Neuro, now my demon tool…" Akane snarled. "Just who the hell do you think you are!? What else are you planning on taking from me!?"

"Your time." Neuro answered, finally forcing the two of them apart.

"My what?"

"If you truly want to help me that badly, you'll have to learn how to use the demon tool you've been so graciously given." He told Yako, totally ignoring Akane while still holding her back from doing anything else to her. "And what better way than to learn how to properly use it than from it's former owner."

"No way!" Akane spat. "No way in hell am I going to help… this _insect_!" She wrinkled her nose in disgust, attempting to take a step forward toward her. Neuro groaned in annoyance, pushing her backward and stood in front of Yako as Akane regained her balance.

"Look," Neuro muttered, looking like he was regretting what he was going to say. "If you take the time to teach her, I'll spend an entire day with you."

"An entire day!?" Akane gasped, a gigantic grin taking the place of the angry frown. Neuro sighed, not seeming as happy.

"Yes, an entire day, _IF_you help Yako."

"Done!" Akane cheered, attempting to fling herself into Neuro's arms. Instead, he easily moved out of her way and the hug meant for him was received by Yako

"I'll leave you to it, then," He chuckled, leaving the room as Akane exclaimed multiple profanities as she pushed herself away from Yako.

"Wait, where are you going!?" Yako asked in a panic. Without Neuro to keep her in check, there was no way in telling what Akane would do to her.

"My presence isn't needed in this case," He smirked. "And why should it matter to you where I go?" Yako stood in silence, not having the heart to tell him she was afraid to be left alone by him. Not waiting another second for her to answer, Neuro chuckled lightly and walked out the door, leaving the two girls alone with one another.

"Meet me outside this filthy place." Akane finally spoke, turning up her nose and quickly leaving the room. "If you make me wait, I'll leave you behind."

* * *

Yako dashed outside, praying that Akane would stick to what she said and had actually left her. But, much to her disappointment, there she was, tapping her foot impatiently and giving her the usual, dirty look.

"Moving at a snails pace, I see?" She asked, annoyed. "For someone who wants to help Neuro, you certainly don't show it very well."

"I do, I just-"

"I'd rather not waste any more of my time you're already taking swapping small talk." Akane interrupted, turning to face the street. "I'm not doing this for you, so there's no reason to chat." With a quick snap of her fingers, the air around them grew painfully silent, the colors of the city being washed out by a sickly-looking green.

"A possessed space?" Yako asked, the sudden lack of anything still taking her by surprise, even after having seen it before.

"Hm, I guess you know a little more than I thought, insect." Akane shrugged. "I'd rather do this little lesson where no one can interrupt- that and it's easier to summon demon tools in a possessed space." The shrill noise of metal clinking together rang through the air, as a long link of chain suddenly appeared at Yako's side, one end being held in Akane's hand, the other somewhere behind her. Turning around she came to find a sickle attached to the end behind her, it's tip buried in the cement. Only then did she feel the warmth of blood trickling down her cheek. Gasping, she reached up, fingers tracing over the bleeding wound.

"What? Surprised?" Akane asked with a grin. "I'm not going to just stand around and tell you how to use a demon tool. Demon tools choose their owners, so you must have some potential. You should be able to summon it without me telling you how." She yanked on the chain, returning the sickle to her hand. "What better way to teach you how to use it than to force those skills out. It's a win/win situation for me: either I properly teach you how to use the demon tool you took from me and get to take Neuro from you for an entire day, or I beat you to a pulp and slice you to ribbons in the process."

"Wait! I'm not ready!" Yako gasped, narrowly dodging the sickle as Akane threw it at her.

"GET READY!" Akane shouted, tugging on the chain. It seemed to grow in length as she pulled, and instead of coming back to her hand, the sickle brushed passed Yako on her opposite side, opening a second wound on her arm. Crying out in pain, she tightly grasped her arm as blood seeped from between her fingers. She stumbled, ducking underneath the ever-growing length of chain as the sickle made a wide turn behind Akane before it begin to shoot towards Yako again.

"Akane, stop! I don't know what to do!" Yako cried, leaping out of the path of the sickle and crashing to the ground. The weapon swooped upward with a quick twist of Akane's wrist, poised and ready to make a nosedive straight for Yako.

"Well, that's just too bad!" Akane laughed, pulling on the chain as the sickle began it's quick decent. "If you can't hope to summon the demon tool when you're in trouble, how can you hope to help Neuro with it!?"

A strange feeling passed through Yako, almost as if she wasn't the one controlling her own body, as she looked up as the sickle's blade headed right for her. But instead of digging into her flesh, it was deflected, sending it careening in an opposite direction, coming to rest in the street. Yako felt out of breath as she looked down at the blades clutched in her shaking hands -The glowing green blades she'd seen once before.

"I see," Akane muttered, retracting the sickle, the chain it was attached to growing immensely shorter as she brought it back to her hand.

"See what?" Yako panted. She was still unsure what brought about the summoning of the blades again, but this time it had worn her out, like they were sapping her of her energy simply by her idly holding them.

"You care more about protecting Neuro more than you care about protecting yourself." Akane explained, walking toward her. "You like him, don't you?" If the question wasn't hard enough to answer on it's own, it was a massively loaded question with Akane asking it. Yako responded with shocked silence as Akane sighed, pressing her palm against her face.

"It's written all over your face. Whenever he's around, whenever he leaves you alone…" She shook her head. "I should tear you limb from limb, but those feelings are going to keep Neuro from dying in this stupid game. He won't admit it, but he's clearly outmatched."

"Then why is he trying so hard to keep other demons from getting the Ultimate Mystery?" Yako asked. "If he knows he's outmatched, why is he putting his life on the line?"

"It's a long story…" Akane paused, folding her arms and throwing Yako a glare. "And I certainly don't want to take the time to explain."

"Please, I want to know!" Yako pleaded. Akane held her glare for a short moment before groaning.

"I'll explain once we're done." She muttered. "I guess being able to summon a demon tool deserves some sort of reward." She lifted her weapon, pointing it to Yako. "But, for now, you should focus on defending yourself. I'm not going to take it easy anymore."

"Fine, I'll hold you to that." Yako agreed. "And I didn't expect you to take it easy."

* * *

"Hey, where are you going!?" Yako called after Akane. Immediately after dropping the possessed space, she had begun to walk away without a word.

"Why do you care?" Akane asked impatiently.

"You promised you would tell me why Neuro is doing all these things just to keep the Ultimate Mystery for himself!" Yako shouted, blocking Akane's path. "I want to know!" Akane looked at Yako as if she'd just called her some horrendous name before loudly groaning.

"Fine- I was hoping you'd forget, but I guess you won't let me off so easily." She stepped to the side, continuing walking forward. "Walk with me." Yako nodded, catching up to Akane.

"I should start from the beginning." Akane began. "Shortly after being sentenced to a life of damnation for his sins as a human, Neuro managed to pull off a rather amazing feat and escaped from hell. And while on earth, he committed the greatest crime any person from the underworld can make."

"What was that?" Yako asked curiously.

"He fell in love." Akane muttered, as if simply saying it was painful for her. "He fell in love with a human girl who took him in. But, before he could tell her, he was captured and dragged back down to hell. They say the girl was killed, mostly to punish Neuro. His rage over having lost her consumed him and turned him into the demon he is today, though he no longer remembers her name or how they met. He only remembers her face.

"The other half of his punishment- why Neuro is at such a great disadvantage- is that he's a servant. Demons who serve other demons obviously aren't given the time to perfect and sharpen their skills. And, after seeing the creature Neuro became after loosing the girl he'd fallen in love with, Satan made sure he wouldn't be given the chance to perfect his skills."

"So that's what Hime meant when she called Neuro a servant." Yako said to herself.

"When word broke out about the Ultimate Mystery, Neuro became obsessed with the power it had and the power it could give him. He knew if he obtained it for himself he'd be able to bring back the girl he'd fallen in love with all those years ago."

"Then why doesn't he just take it then, if it's so important to him?" Yako asked.

"Neuro wants to see the people who were once above him fail before he takes the Ultimate Mystery for himself." Akane explained. "It's just the kind of person he is. He values the failure of others over his own personal gain… for now."

"Heh, it seems you two are getting along," A voice chuckled behind them. Both Yako and Akane turned around to see Neuro, holding a bag from the local bakery, most likely containing donuts again.

"Not at all!" Akane immediately answered, folding her arms and facing away from Yako. "She just kept on bugging me about something, that's all." She looked up at him with a cocky look. "And I'll have you know I managed to beat the ability to use that demon tool she took from me into her, which means you owe me and entire day with you."

"It seems I do," Neuro said, blankly, walking past them. Yako looked between the two of them for a moment before following after Neuro.

"Hey!" Akane hissed, grabbing her by the wrist. "Don't tell Neuro about anything I just told you, okay?"

"Why?" Yako asked.

"Just don't okay!?" She tightened her grip around Yako's wrist.

"Okay, okay!" Yako nodded as Akane let her go so she could catch up with Neuro.

"You better not," Akane said in a voice Yako probably couldn't hear, turning around. "I'd hate to get caught in a lie."


	8. Lonely

_BANG! BANG!_

Yako slowly awoke to someone angrily pounding on her door. At first, she assumed it was Neuro -except he never used the door, and he was above her, on the ceiling, just waking up as well.

_BANG! BANG!_

"Who in the world could that be!?" Yako groaned, reaching over and grabbing her clock on her bedside that read 9:30 AM. Neuro looked over to the door with a withering look, remaining on the ceiling as she stumbled out of bed and ungracefully made her way to the door.

"Neuro! I'm here! Come out!" Akane's voice practically screamed through the door as Yako's hand just touched the doorknob. Curiosity now gone, she didn't feel inclined in the slightest to let the bratty demon in. If it hadn't been for her incessant yelling, she would have turned around and gotten back into bed. The fact she would most likely get complaints from her stuffy neighbors was her only motive for opening the door for Akane, who rushed past her as if she was invisible, making a b-line for her bedroom.

"Neuro!" She cheered like an excited child as Neuro dropped from the ceiling, giving her an unwelcoming look that greatly trumped the one Yako had given her.

"I'm right here," He groaned, placing his hand over her face to keep her an arms length away, stopping any hugs she had planned to give him. "You don't have to yell. What do you want?"

"Don't tell me you forgot!" Akane gasped. Her surprise in her voice sounded fake to Yako, like Akane was amateurishly going off a script. "You promised you'd spend an entire day with me!" Neuro put on his usual look he gave most people, which was looking at Akane like she was some sort of unwanted insect crawling up his leg. For once, Yako understood why.

"Oh. That." Neuro muttered, free hand over his forehead like her was nursing a headache. He was making it very obvious he didn't want to go, and each sign was flying high over Akane's head as she side stepped the hand that was keeping her from glomming onto Neuro and wrapped her arms around one of his, making sure to throw Yako one of the most sinister looks she could as she did.

"Come on then, we haven't a moment to lose!" She giggled, pulling Neuro out of Yako's room and toward the door. She flashed Yako the same, spiteful grin as she passed her, Neuro in tow. What made Yako angry was that it actually got her mad.

"We'll be going now!" Akane added as she opened the door. "Enjoy being all-by-your-self!" The door slammed behind her, leaving Yako standing silently in the living room. She half expected to see Neuro sneak in some other way after eluding Akane, but after standing in the same spot for a few minutes it seemed he was going to stay true to his word whether he wanted to or not. Groaning, she slumped against the wall and allowed herself to slowly slide down to the floor.

_"You like him, don't you?_"

Yako shook her head. There was no way, was there? She wanted to deny it outright, but, even to herself, she was all over the place about her answer. She'd never been in love with anyone, at least not seriously -she had no way of knowing what her feelings were.

"I should get ready for work," she mumbled, trying to take her mind off the debate over how she felt for Neuro that was slowly growing larger and louder in her head. On her feet again, the flashing light from her phone caught her eye, signaling someone had left her a message. They must have called while Akane was pounding on her door.

"Um… Hi… It's Godai." Her boss' voice said, sounding rather forced. "I just wanted to say… Good work yesterday and…You can take the day off tomorrow…" Yako leaned over her phone, half expecting Godai to say something else, but that was it. It was like Godai to leave a short message that she didn't have to come in for work, like telling her so was hurting him and his business. It _wasn't_ like him to give her a day off for her "good work", though. Even Kanae didn't get days off after delivering fantastic photo shoot after photo shoot. Something didn't seem right, but she didn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth. It was a beautiful day outside and, last she checked, all she had left to eat in her house was instant noodles and a few things in her fridge she was sure had gone bad. Normally, going out to the super market was a chore, but anything that kept her mind from wandering into the deadly cycle that was what she thought about Neuro sounded good to her.

After a quick shower and having the pleasure to actually ponder over what to wear instead of yanking random things out of her closet, Yako grabbed her wallet and headed for the door, taking a quick second to check herself in the mirror placed by the door. Fixing the hair clip Neuro had given her that had slightly slipped out of place, her fingers lingered on the cold plastic surface for a brief moment before she caught herself and shook herself out of her trance. Turning away from the mirror, she hurried out the door. It was just a hairclip, all Neuro gave it to her for was so that he would know where she was, nothing else.

She shielded her eyes as she stepped out of the apartment lobby and into the sunshine. The sky was blue and clear, not a single white puff of cloud lingering anywhere. Akane sure picked the appropriate day to take Neuro on an all-day-date. She quietly groaned to herself; she had to stop thinking about Neuro, it was starting to get ridiculous. She morphed into the crowd flowing in the direction of the super market, eyes darting from side to side every few seconds. It only hit her now that she was alone and outside that, if she was going to get attacked, she was going to be on her own. She had the comfort of the fact she could summon something to defend herself with, but nothing really was as comforting as having someone to help her. It sounded pathetic, but it was the truth.

"Yako!" Yako jumped as someone called her name and rested their hand on her shoulder. A split second later she knew she had over-reacted, since no demon would happily call her by name. Whirling around she found Higuchi standing behind her, looking surprised.

"Ah, I'm sorry!" He apologized. Yako mentally smacked herself, trying to take the frightened look off her face.

"It's okay, I'm just a little jumpy, that's all!" She laughed nervously. "It's not your fault." Higuchi sighed, looking relieved.

"That's good, I thought I hurt you or something for a second there." He smiled. He was dressed a little more casually than the other times she'd seen him.

"You have today off today, too?" She asked him as she slowly started walking again, Higuchi quickly following behind her.

"Sort of." Higuchi grinned. "I took a sick day." Yako snorted. He'd always been a rule-abiding bookworm back in school- taking a day off from work he was allowed to take off was probably his way of rebelling. "I didn't want to waste a nice day like this stuck at a desk all day." Yako silently agreed with a nod.

"Hey, since we both have the day off, how about we go somewhere?" Higuchi asked. He sounded enthusiastic about it, though he was looking away shyly.

"I…I actually have a few boring errands to run, I'd hate for you to have to tag along." Yako quickly said, coming up with excuses.

"It won't be a bother, I don't have anything else better to do!" Higuchi told her, oblivious to the fact Yako had just tried to blow him off. Then again, she needed something to keep her mind off of you-know-who. It was probably the only opportunity she'd get to attempt to stop her from doing so. They were high school friends- going out together alone seemed a bit awkward to her, but she didn't have much of a choice.

"Fine, I guess." She agreed with a smile, catching her hair clip again that had begun to slip from her hair.

"Hey, that's new," Higuchi pointed out as she slipped the clip back in place.

"Oh, it was just a little gift from someone, nothing special." Yako explained, trying to urge the conversation away from the hair clip.

"Who is he?" Yako was about to tell him it was no one he knew until she realized he had asked who _HE_ was. So much for not thinking about Neuro.

"Wait! How do you know a guy gave this to me!?" She asked, embarrassed.

"The way your face looked when you said it was a gift from someone gave it away." He told her, looking defeated. "He must be pretty special to you." Yako jumped, feeling very much inclined to deny and deny and deny some more until a new sort of panic swept over her as the area around them became dead quiet, the bright sun light becoming dimmer shade of blue. No, there was no way! Higuchi's look of absolute shock said otherwise.

Somehow both of them had been trapped in a possessed space! Yako quickly whipped around, looking for whoever had caused it.

"Yako, what's going on!?" Higuchi asked in fright, looking all around at the blue-dyed, empty city they had suddenly been sent to. "Where is everyone!"

"There's no time to explain!" Yako snapped back. She didn't want to say it, but she was just as frightened as Higuchi was. She wanted nothing more than to panic, just like he was doing, but she had no other choice but to fight -That or die. A violent shiver ran up her spine at the thought as she summoned her demon tool, which only caused Higuchi behind her to freak out even more. Over his panicked questions, she could hear the faint echo of footsteps drawing closer through the empty streets.

"My, my. It seems I've caught two little mice in my trap." A familiar, amused voice laughed as the creator of the possessed space emerged.

"Aya…" Yako thought allowed, hands tightening around her weapons.

"Aya? You mean that new pop star?" Higuchi whispered, now confused on top of being frightened.

"I can't tell you everything right now, but Aya… she isn't a human." Yako told him, looking back at him for a quick second before looking back to Aya, who was still walking closer. "And she's here to try and kill me."

"Kill you!?"

"Quite a timid little thing, isn't he?" Aya laughed. "Next to him you can hardly tell your quivering nearly just as much." She eyed the two swords Yako had in a white-knuckled grip. "Heh, you just keep on getting more and more interesting, don't you? Being able to summon a demon tool is no easy task for a human." She licked her lips, wiping away a trail of drool with the back of her hand. "It only makes me even more excited to claim my prize." Yako gasped, wildly swinging one of the blades at Aya once she drew to near. She easily avoided the attack, casually jumping backward as if Yako hardly posed a threat.

"Stay back!" Yako shouted, her voice wavering in fear. "I'm warning you!"

"Warning me?" Aya smirked. "When used by a demon, your blades can cut through any material with ease. But in your tiny, shaking hands they're nothing more than normal weapons you can only haphazardly swing about. I'll say it again, it makes you seem all the more interesting -but a threat? I don't think so."

"Yako, we need to get out of here!" Higuchi cried, trying to run down the now empty streets. The ground before him suddenly cracked and exploded, an invisible force knocking him backward.

"Higuchi!" Yako gasped, looking over to Aya, who now was holding something that looked like a guitar, except it didn't have any visible strings.

"My demon tool, Evil Chord, on the other hand can do much more." She laughed. "It can create sound waves and turn them into deadly weapons. A single note can transform into a wave of deadly, invisible blades and destroy anything in their path." She turned to Higuchi, who was still on the ground, scooting away from the destroyed mess of cement. "That includes you, if you even try to escape."

"You leave him out of this!" Yako shouted. Aya responded with laughter, which only made Yako freeze up with fright even more.

"Yes, let's not shift our attention away from the larger goal." Aya chuckled, lifting her hand in preparation to strike another note. "I'll gladly consume the Ultimate Mystery first and then, I'll see whether I'll feel merciful to spare that scared little friend of yours later." Yako shook, using every inch of strength to try and make her limbs move, but to no avail. She needed Neuro to be there! Without him she was helpless!

"Feel honored your life will be ended by my musical masterpiece!" Aya cackled, giving the invisible strings on her demon tool a single, violent strum. A loud chord screeched through the air as the path leading from Aya to Yako began to quickly distort and break apart. Yako cried out, squeezing her eyes shut as a single thought ran through her mind.

_Neuro!_

Someone pushing her out of the way forced her to open her eyes as she tumbled to the ground, loosing grip on both the blades she had been holding. At first, she came to the conclusion it had been Higuchi who had knocked her out of the way of Aya's attack.

"No!" She gasped, whipping her head around from on the ground to find Higuchi, still in the same place she'd saw him last, looking up in fear. Shifting her gaze to where she had once stood, she came to find Neuro, arms crossed in front of his face, his body marred with deep slices from the attack that was meant for her.

"Do you think that demon tool you have is just for show, worm?" He asked, lowering his arms and looking down at her with an annoyed look. Yako looked back at him, totally speechless. "Her attack wasn't even set to kill, you could have easily done something."

"What?" Yako gasped in disbelief as Aya chuckled.

"I couldn't help it- I have a horrible habit of playing with my food." She sneered, her demon tool vanishing from her hands. "I certainly wouldn't want to kill her so soon, not after all the planning I've done."

"Planning?" Neuro asked, his wounds slowly healing themselves.

"I have a large, live concert coming up. Thousands of humans will be attending, and maybe millions more will be listening to it being broadcast live almost world-wide. I've sent you two VIP passes and I'd hate to have you miss it." She laughed. "My music has the power to make any human my mind slave -obviously, you realized it back at the studio." Godai having been nice enough to give Yako the day off suddenly made much more sense. "With all those humans bowing to my every whim and, on top of that, the Ultimate Mystery that you'll practically hand over to me at the concert, I'll be able to rule both hell and earth." Yako's eyes widened in fear.

"We'll be at your pointless concert," Neuro told her. "But your plan won't even see the light of day." Aya cackled, like Neuro had just told a joke.

"Oh, will it now?" She giggled. "We'll have to see then, won't we?" She turned away from them, waving her hand goodbye. "So long until then." Aya vanished, along with the possessed space as everything faded back to normal, the three of them becoming surrounded by crowds and noises of the city once again. Yako quickly leaped up, running past Neuro to help Higuchi up.

"Yako, what in the world is going on!?" He cried.

"Shh, not so loud!" Yako hissed, looking to Neuro who was still standing in the same spot. "Look, I'll explain everything at the apartment- common." She grasped his hand and began walking in the direction of her apartment, coming to find Neuro had disappeared.

"At least tell me who that guy was!" Higuchi said in a more hushed tone.

"His name's Neuro," Yako explained. "He's the one who gave me the hair clip."

* * *

"So, let me get this straight." Higuchi groaned, rubbing his head. The two of them were sitting in Yako's living room, two untouched bowls of instant noodles beside them. "You're a container of some demonic energy source, and Aya is one of the demons who are trying to get it?"

"Pretty much." Yako sighed, chin on her drawn up knees. "It's been going on for a while now and it still scares me."

"Isn't there any way to make it stop?" He asked her.

"Not unless I die." The sound of someone knocking away the cardboard cover that Yako had placed over her broken window came from her room.

"What was that?" Higuchi gasped, looking at Yako who was much calmer about the sudden racket.

"That would be Neuro- he insists on coming in through my window instead of using the door." Yako told him. "He's the only part about this whole mess that doesn't frighten me any more. Now… he just makes me feel helpless."

"Hmm, I expected you to have shooed him out by now." Neuro interrupted, walking into the room. Higuchi froze up in fear, looking over his shoulder at the demon who had just walked into the room.

"Well…um…I should really get going now." He muttered, quickly getting up.

"You don't have to, it's alright!" Yako told him, standing up as well.

"No, no, it's fine! I have things to do!" Higuchi lied, making his way to the door -only to have Neuro block his way.

"It would be wise on your part if you didn't go and tell anyone about what you've seen today." He darkly growled. "I'd hate to get my hands dirty with insect guts." Higuchi gasped, nodding his head. Neuro smirked, stepping out of his way. "Good, I'm glad we have an understanding." Without hesitation, Higuchi proceeded his speedy retreat out Yako's door, leaving her and Neuro alone.

"You didn't have to scare him like that, you know?" Yako groaned.

"You're still quite the coward." Neuro told her, not even bothering to give his reasoning as to why he had to frighten Higuchi into keeping his mouth shut.

"What?"

"You have a demon tool- something no normal human can possess- and you still stood there like a frightened cockroach."

"But…in my hands they're just normal swords! I can't do anything with them!"

"Did you even try?" Neuro glanced at her angrily.

"But Aya said-"

"And you believed her?" Yako opened her mouth to speak, only to turn her gaze to the floor in shame. She heard Neuro sigh as he approached her, grasping her chin and lifting her head up.

"How to use the demon tool's power is something neither Akane or I can teach you. It's a skill you'll have to develop yourself."

"But how can I do that!?" Yako asked, trying her hardest not to meet his eyes. "I'm just a human, things like this don't come naturally to me."

"A person who is just a human wouldn't have been chosen to be the container of the Ultimate Mystery. A person who is just a human wouldn't be able to summon a demon tool. Maybe the trick to mastering the skills you've been given is to stop thinking about yourself as just a human…" He reached into his pocket with his free hand, retrieving something and slipping it into her hair. Reaching up, Yako felt her fingers brush against the familiar surface of her hair clip. "…And start thinking of yourself as something more."

"My hair clip!" Yako exclaimed. "I never even noticed it was missing!"

"And maybe actually using that thing of yours that hardly passes as a brain would help, too." Neuro chuckled, letting go of her chin and turning around.

"I should go, Akane is probably wondering where I am-" Before he could take a single step, Yako had grasped one of his wrists with both her hands. He looked back at her to find she was just as surprised as he was about her action, although her grip on his wrist didn't loosen.

"I…" Yako looked to the floor again, trying to come up with an explanation. "I…don't want you to go…" She turned bright red as Neuro raised his eyebrow questionably.

"And why exactly is that, worm?"

"When you're around I always feel strengthened… Braver…" Yako explained. "But when you're gone all I can think about is you…and I feel…" Her blush became more profound with each word. "…lonely…" She flinched, unsure Neuro would react to what she had said.

"Lonely, is it?" Neuro chuckled, placing his free hand on the top of her head. "And why is that?" Yako paused, the words on the tip of her tongue.

"I…" She clamped her mouth shut, rethinking if telling him was the right thing to do, but, in the end, despite her second guessing, the words slipped out. "I like you."


	9. Happy

Yako drew in a sharp breath, unable to catch the words she had just spoke in time. Now all there was to do was wait until Neuro responded, possibly with something sarcastic and sharp. Still tightly gripping his wrist, she flinched and readied herself from the worst.

But all that reached her ears was a painful silence, and it was much more bothersome than anything Neuro could have said. Anything would have done: some sort of jab, even any sort of movement on Neuro's part. But, instead, the two of them stood motionless with Yako still tightly closing her eyes. The look Neuro could possibly be giving her now could only be worse than she imagined, seeing as she'd never done something so stupid he didn't even have any words to retaliate with.

Please, say something -anything!

She slowly opened her eyes, still looking down at the floor and at Neuro's wrist she still had in her clutches. It took every inch of will to force her head to slowly turn upward away from the floor and Neuro's hand. She didn't know what to expect to see as she continued to raise her head inch by painful inch- her field of vision was now focused on Neuro's chest that rose and fell with each breath. The unknown of what was just a few more tilts of the head away frightened her.

"Neuro…" Yako drew in a long breath to prepare herself before snapping her head upward. "I-!"

"NEURO!" Yako's door flew open, loudly banging against the wall to reveal Akane, who had, judging by the way she was standing, kicked it open. And, in the split second between Yako lifting her head and Akane making her loud and angry entrance, Neuro disappeared, his wrist no longer in Yako's grip. She looked around in surprise as Akane stomped over to her, tightly grasping her shoulder.

"WHERE IS NEURO!?" She barked. Yako looked at her frantically, shaking her head.

"I…I don't know!" She gasped. Akane growled in frustration, a mistrusting look in her eyes as she pushed Yako out of her way and onto the floor as she proceeded to look about her apartment.

"You better not be lying, you pig!" Akane hissed as she continued to look around. Yako pushed herself upright, looking down at her hands that had pulled Neuro back so she could blurt out something stupid. Albeit it was the truth, it was stupid for her to have told him at all.

"Idiot…" she muttered under her breath only to have Akane grasp her chin and force her head up.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing, I wasn't talking to you!" Yako gasped.

"Tch," Akane rolled her eyes, letting go of Yako's chin and continued her search. She stormed around the apartment a few more times before groaning in defeat and turning to glare at Yako, who was still on the floor.

"You better not be lying," She warned her as she headed for the door. "If you're the reason Neuro ditched me, I'll slice you up into lunch meat!" Yako bit her lip, since it truthfully _was_her fault Neuro had gone against his word and left Akane to help her.

Flinching as Akane slammed the door closed, Yako half expected Neuro to re-appear. But after the passing of several long minutes, she was still alone, looking hopefully before her in anticipation for his return.

"Neuro?" She finally called, struggling to her feet and looking around for him in all the places Akane had checked before. A thorough search of her apartment left her with nothing, and, in defeat, she fell onto her bed, looking up at the un-occupied ceiling.

"You're an idiot, Yako," She told herself, rolling over onto her side, forcing herself to look away from the space Neuro usually slept. "What did you expect him to say?" Her eyes traveled to her window, the shattered hole now exposed, letting in a warm breeze from outside.

"He'll come back, he always does."

* * *

Yako gasped as she woke up. She was unsure when she had fallen asleep, but as she opened her eyes she was greeted by darkness. Sitting up, she looked around for any sign Neuro had come back at all. He wasn't at her demolished window, nor was he above her on the ceiling. The bathroom was unoccupied as well, and upon further inspection, the rest of her apartment was quiet and empty, bathed in the faint glow of the streetlights below.

Something else, however, caught her eye as she looked around hopefully for Neuro. A medium sized envelope poked out from under her door. Someone must have slipped it under her door when she was sleeping. It wasn't addressed to her or anyone else, and there wasn't a return address either. She raised an eyebrow in suspicion as she carefully tore open the envelope and shook it's contents into her open hand: two backstage passes fluttered out, one for her and one for Neuro.

"Great," Yako muttered. If Neuro's strange disappearance and her own stupid feelings weren't enough to worry about, she now had Aya's upcoming performance on her mind which, according to what was written on the passes, was in three days. She wanted nothing more than to hide the passes away and forget about them, but she could just hear Neuro's voice in the back of her head calling her a coward.

"Three days," She thought aloud, studying the passes. "Neuro should come back by then." She turned to her bedroom, listening to the whistling of the wind as it passed through her broken window. Sure, she could say it all she wanted, but she couldn't shake the worry that had been brought on by Neuro being missing for a few hours.

"Neuro wouldn't just leave, don't be ridiculous," she told herself shaking her head as she walked back into her room, eyes still focused on the backstage passes. "Just because you said something without thinking doesn't mean he'll just leave." She set the passes on her bedside table and took out her hairclip, running her fingers over the surface for a brief moment before setting it on top of the passes to keep them from blowing away.

"He'll come back, he always does."

* * *

Waking up to find Neuro wasn't above her had never bothered Yako so much. The entire morning, as she got ready for work, everything seemed strange, like something was extremely off. Every chance her mind got to wander, she'd constantly remind herself Neuro wasn't there; Not there to greet her in his usual way when she woke up, not there to make her uncomfortable and watch her as she changed, not there to hold the door open for. Having him be a part of her daily routine hadn't been something that had been happening for so long, but, for some reason, without him there, everything she did reminded her he wasn't there. Especially the weight of her hair clip as it bobbed up and down as she ran to work. It had never felt so heavy- like it was silently reminding her about her stupid mistake of letting her emotions control her.

"You're late," Godai groaned, looking at Yako with his usual, annoyed glance.

"I'm sorry, I'm just a bit off today, that's all," Yako apologized.

"Where's that guy who's always with you these days?" He asked, pointing to the empty space behind her.

"How should I know?" She sighed. "It doesn't matter." That was a lie, it mattered a lot. She just couldn't stand that Godai of all people was pointing out Neuro's absence.

"Well, don't waste any more time!" He told her. "Hurry up and change- we're cutting it close as it is." Yako nodded and hurried off to the changing room, finding herself keeping the door open like Neuro was there to follow her inside.

"Stupid…" She muttered as she closed the door behind her, looking across the room to the mirror, her eyes immediately settling on the hairclip nestled in her hair. Biting her lip in frustration, she snatched it out of place and stuffed it into the pocket of her shorts before going about changing into the single outfit that was laid out for her that day.

During the photo shoot, it was as if they had gone back in time to when Yako could do nothing but disappoint Godai. Being decent enough to escape an angry rant from Godai every shoot had begun to become common for her, so being below his expectations was shocking. A chorus of "no" from him met every single pose she tried, and she managed to fall no more than four times during the shoot. It was just like old times: something no one had expected to happen.

It was no surprise to Yako that she wasn't told good job for the mediocre shoot she had delivered. She left the studio without a word, managing to catch Godai giving her a disappointed frown as she turned to leave. She didn't blame him- she was just as angry with herself.

"Hey!" An angry voice greeted her as she stepped outside. Right outside the entrance was Akane, giving her a stink eye.

"What do you want?" Yako asked, not bothering to look at her or even stop walking toward the street as she asked.

"Where's Neuro?" She asked, looking around. Yako came to a dead halt, clenching her fists.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know!?" Akane asked in frustration, running in front of her. Yako could feel the muscles in her throat tightening, knowing, if she spoke a single word, she would end up crying. Everything from start to finish would let her know loud and clear Neuro had disappeared, and the fact it was most likely her fault would accompany them. "Where is Neuro!?"

"I…I…" Yako mumbled, unable to control herself any more as she lifted her head to face Akane, tears falling from her eyes. Akane's eyes that had been filled with anger quickly grew wide in surprise.

"Hey, hey, what did I say!?" She exclaimed, looking around frantically.

"It's not that, I…" Yako sniffled, trying to wipe the tears from her eyes. "I…I just…" Akane looked around nervously, feeling the stares the two of them were getting as Yako slowly broke down in front of her.

"Common," Akane muttered, grabbing the crying Yako by the hand and dragging her through the crowds of people. She didn't resist in any way and obediently followed behind her until they came to a halt in a small park nestled between the tall buildings of the city. Hardly anyone was there to watch Yako cry, so it felt a nice enough place to stop.

"So what exactly is your problem?" Akane asked, sounding more annoyed than worried.

"I…I told him I liked him…" Yako muttered, wiping at her eyes again.

"What!?"

"Yesterday…I told Neuro I liked him." She repeated, "And he hasn't come back." Akane looked at her, dumbfounded.

"Are you some kind of idiot?" Akane asked sharply. Yako took a moment from trying and failing to dry her eyes to look at her in surprise. "What made you think it was a good idea!?" Yako flinched, eyes traveling to the ground.

"I don't know," She lightly sobbed. Akane groaned, resting her face in her open palm.

"You humans are all the same; everything you do is controlled by emotions. None of you stop to think how it could effect other people." She muttered. "What good could come from falling in love with him anyway? You're just a tool to him in the end." Yako looked up at Akane in shock.

"W…what?"

"As long as you're the Ultimate Mystery's container, he'll only see you as a tool to get what he wants. Being in a relationship with you wouldn't help his cause at all if, in the end, all there is in your future is having him tear you apart once he's through with watching people fail to obtain you." Akane turned away from her, looking like explaining the fact to Yako bothered her. "You're special to him- you're more than just a human to him, but none of that means he'll bother to return your affections. You're just an obstacle he needs to get past in order to obtain his goals."

"I…" Yako looked at her shocked, feeling like she'd just been punched in the face. She didn't want to admit it, but Akane was right. The fact had been staring her in the face since her and Neuro met, and she had chosen to ignore it and let her feelings get in the way. The weight in her pocket where her hair clip had been stored away felt as if it were dragging her down. "I'm a real idiot, aren't I?" She reached into her pocket, pulling out the hair clip and clutching it tightly in her fist. She had been idiot for thinking it meant anything, she was an idiot for thinking ANYTHING Neuro had done had meant anything. Angrily, she lifted her fist in the air, poised and ready to the throw the hair clip to the ground and let it shatter against the pavement.

"Hey, what are you-?" Akane asked as Yako slowly lowered her hand, unable to muster up the strength to break the trinket. It wasn't meant as anything, but it meant too much to her, no matter how much she hated it now.

"Hey, Akane… That girl Neuro fell in love with… He'll be happy when they finally can be together again, right?"

"…I guess." Akane shrugged.

"Good," Yako weakly smiled, pocketing her hair clip once again as she walked passed her.

"Hey, you aren't going to do something stupid, are you?"

"Probably," Yako shrugged. "But all I am is a tool to him, the least I can do… is make him happy."

* * *

Yako couldn't help but feel nervous sitting on her bed as she tightly grasped the backstage pass. Each day that had gone by she had hoped Neuro would come back, and each day she was met with the same, empty apartment. And now, on the day of the concert, she was alone again, mentally prepping herself without him. A part of her wanted to run away, hide and not face Aya on her own. But another part of her wanted to prove something, and what she wanted to prove and who she wanted to prove it to was much more important than trying to save her own skin and turn tail and run.

She turned to her window, newly fixed. Every night she left it open, and every day she left it unlocked.

"I hope you'll be watching me." She smiled. "Wherever you are…" She placed the second backstage pass on the windowsill, looking out into the darkening skies as day slowly faded into night. Shaking her head she turned around, heading for the door.

"Oh, hold on…" she muttered, running back and grabbing her hair clip from the bathroom and slipping it into place. "Now I'm ready." She turned to the window one, last time. There was a chance she wouldn't come back, but it was a chance she was willing to take.


	10. Performance

Yako stood outside the concert hall, staring up at the massive building as her heart pounded in her chest. She could hear the distant sound of cheering and the faint echo of music over the blood pounding in her ears. She wanted to move forward, but at the same time she was too frightened to move another centimeter towards the building where the demon, Aya, was awaiting her arrival. Turning her tail and running back to her apartment sounded like the best idea at the time as she tried to coax her shaking legs to propel her forward. But each time she contemplated the thought of running away, she could hear Neuro's voice in her head.

"Coward."

She shook her head, the cheering from inside growing louder as the music that had accompanied the din stopped. There wasn't any turning back now- sooner or later she'd come face to face with the cruel creature who wanted to tear her apart with or without Neuro at her side.

"A person who is just a human wouldn't have been chosen to be the container of the Ultimate Mystery." She chanted silently to herself as she finally managed to move her legs in the direction of the concert hall. "A person who is just a human wouldn't be able to summon a demon tool." She took another few steps until she found herself standing before the glass doors of the building. "The trick to mastering the skills you've been given is to stop thinking about yourself as just a human…" She reached out, gripping the door handle. Just as her fingers wrapped around the cold metal, the cheering of the crowd vanished, along with the other noises of the city behind her, leaving her ears ringing. Aya knew she had arrived. Yako gulped, taking a long breath as she squeezed her eyes shut, slowly pulling at the handle of the door. "…And start thinking of yourself as something more!"

She flung the door open, walking inside the dead-quiet hallway, opening her eyes wide to find she had company. Two security guards stood at either side before her, faces looking blank and clouded eyes fixed on her. Yako braced herself, expecting some sort of attack. Thinking back to her experience with Hime, they could morph into frightening creatures at any moment.

"Miss Aya has been waiting for you," they both said in unison, turning away from her and heading down the empty hallway. "Right this way, please." Yako stood her ground as the two of them began to walk away. It could very well be a trap, and she didn't know whether to follow them or to stay where she was. And as if they had read her mind they stopped, standing statue-still until she finally decided to follow after them.

Much to her surprise, the two security guards didn't turn on her and attack, but silently lead her down the winding hallways of the concert hall without as much as a word. It didn't stop Yako from being paranoid as she looked back and fourth whenever they came across an intersection of hallways. As expected of a possessed space, anyone who Aya didn't want to witness her true colors were no longer in the concert hall, but the lack of any sort of attempt to attack her beforehand didn't seem right.

Soon after, the two security guards lead her into a spacious room covered from floor to ceiling in mechanics, catwalks covering the ceiling. It didn't take long to discover where she was as she turned to a thick wall of fabric, a voice calling her from the other side.

"What a surprise, I didn't expect you to come alone." Aya's voice cackled, echoing from speakers hidden in the darkness as the curtain slowly rose, bathing the backstage in spotlights. And in the center of the stage stood Aya, showing off a wide, toothy grin. Behind her, to Yako's surprise, was the entire audience, still present in her possessed space. "I hope you don't mind having your final performance being in front of such a large crowd." Yako glared at her, slowly walking to center stage, Aya's hungry eyes following each and every move she made until the two of them were face to face.

"And where, might I ask, if your comedic chorus line, Neuro?" She asked, her grin growing wider as she acknowledged the fact that the one who always protected Yako was nowhere in sight. Yako refused to answer, staring straight into her eyes.

"Nothing to say?" Aya chuckled. "It must be stage fright- your shaking gives it away." With a showy display of hand gestures, she brandished her demon tool. Yako leapt backwards, summoning hers as well, already feeling it sucking energy from her through her fingertips.

"Those useless blades again?" Aya scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Well, go one, try using them. I didn't get to see how useless they really are in your quivering little hands last time." Yako felt her body react on its own as she charged forward, wildly swinging one of the swords at Aya, who leapt gracefully through the air and easily avoided the attack. At the same time she quickly ran her fingers across her guitars invisible strings, a screaming high note echoing loudly. Gasping, Yako forced herself backward, watching as the floor where she once stood exploded into a shower of ripped up boards and splinters.

"Ready to give up yet, Yako?" Aya cackled, appearing behind her. Yako whipped around, swinging both blades in Aya's direction only to have both blows blocked by the guitar and was sent sliding backward a few feet. She could feel her entire body quivering violently; her fingers tightly wrapped around each sword handle so tightly it stung. She'd never been so terrified, and she found herself thinking to herself over and over just how frightened she was- frightened of Aya, frightened of her demon tool, frightened of dying...

"Coward."

"I won't give up!" Yako growled. "I refuse to give up!" She charged forward, feeling as if the blades themselves were pulling her entire body as she swung them at Aya again who blocked each blow but was slowly being knocked further and further back.

"Heh, you've certainly prepared an interesting performance," Aya chuckled, a look of annoyance showing through her usual grin as Yako's blades and the neck of her guitar clashed. "But, I think it's time we moved such an interesting display center stage!" Before Yako could react, Aya had already played a loud and screeching note, and all there was time to do was cover her face as she felt something like a violent gale push her backward. Pain shot through her as wounds were opened up and down her body. The force pushing her backward calmed as she fell to the wooden surface of the stage, moaning in pain as she tried to push herself back up. Eyes focused on the floorboards, she watched as small droplets of blood dripped from her body and onto the ground around her.

"Does it hurt, Yako?" Aya laughed, her shadow falling over her. She slowly lifted her head, each movement she made sending waves of pain through her body. Aya looked down at her with pride, relishing in watching Yako as she struggled to meet her gaze. "I can make it all go away, you know?" She knelt down, gently grasping Yako's chin, causing her to hiss in pain. She could feel her sharp nails slowly digging into her chin. "If you allow me to take the Ultimate Mystery, you'll be freed from all of this pain."

"No…" Yako muttered under her breath.

"What was that, you annoying insect?" Aya growled, grasping a handful of Yako's hair instead of her chin. Yako cringed and cried out in pain before slowly opening her eyes, angrily looking back at Aya.

"I said NO!" Yako yelled, using all her strength to lift one of her arms and swipe at Aya with one of her blades. She narrowly dodged, letting go of Yako and jumping backwards. Yako fell back to her hands and knees, finally finding the strength to slowly push herself to her feet despite how much her body ached.

"How dare-!" Aya gasped, feeling something warm slowly ooze down her cheek. She brought a hand to her face in panic, fingers brushing against a gash that marred her cheek, a steady trickle of blood flowing onto her fingers and down her hand. "My…My face…." Aya's expression grew ugly as she grasped at the wound on her face. "YOU LITTLE BITCH!"

"I refuse to let you have the Ultimate Mystery," Yako uttered, wobbling back and fourth on unsteady legs. The paralyzing fear she had felt before seemed to have vanished as she looked at Aya with an unwavering stare. Her quivering had stopped entirely, replaced with an almost soothing calm. "Because it rightfully belongs to Neuro!"

"LIKE HELL IT DOES!" Aya shrieked, still covering the bleeding wound on her face with her hand. "THAT WEAKLING DESERVES NOTHING! THE ULTIMATE MYSTERY BELONGS TO ME!" Yako charged forward at Aya, who finally uncovered her face to grasp her guitar, using the other hand to play yet another ear-shattering chord.

'A person who is just a human wouldn't have been chosen to be the container of the Ultimate Mystery!' Yako found herself thinking again as she charged straight into Aya's attack. 'A person who is just a human wouldn't be able to summon a demon tool! The trick to mastering the skills you've been given is to stop thinking about yourself as just a human…' Yako loudly yelled as she tightly gripped one of her blades and sliced the air in front of her as she ran. She could feel the invisible attack meant for her blow past her on both sides, destroying the stage around her.

"WHAT!?" Aya cried in shock as Yako continued to charge. Before she could play a second note, the guitar suddenly fell from her grasp. The single second that past seemed like hours to her as she watched as Yako's second blade sliced her arm clean off at the shoulder, removing her hand that had been holding her demon tool along with it.

Time sped back up to normal as Yako barreled past her, almost losing her footing as she stopped herself and turned around to face her foe. Choked gasps escaped Aya's lips as she grasped at the profusely bleeding nub that used to be her arm. However, she remained standing, grip on her major wound growing dangerously tight to the point where she began to mar her own skin. Her entire body shook as a low growl rose from her throat.

"I guess I underestimated you…" Aya muttered darkly, still facing away from Yako, who was panting from exhaustion as she fell to one knee, using one of her swords as a crutch. "You're certainly much more than just a weak little human, and it's certainly peaked my appetite…" She slowly turned to face Yako, a furious glare on her face that twisted her features into something ugly. "You may have ruined my face and taken off my arm, but I'll make sure to destroy you as slow as I can before I claim what's rightfully mine!" Yako flinched, half expecting Aya to leap and attack. Instead, she heard a sickening squishing sound as a chocked gasp exited Aya's lips. Uncoiling from her defensive ball she'd rolled herself into she came to find a familiar set of claws poking out from Aya's stomach, covered in blood.

"I'm certain she told you earlier that the Ultimate Mystery doesn't belong to you."

Yako gasped, finding Neuro angrily staring at Aya from behind.

"Neuro!"

"Y-You…" Aya moaned, a heavy flow of blood escaping her lips and choking off any other words she had to say as it bubbled from her mouth down her chin and neck.

"I must admit, you delivered quite the amusing performance," Neuro told her, seeming amused by her pain. "But even the best shows must come to an end."

"N-No-" Aya coughed, the words being her last as Neuro used the claws he had already buried inside her to slice her body in half. Yako gasped in horror, turning away and covering her eyes as a queasy feeling washed over her from having watched such a thing.

"Yako…" She gasped, hearing Neuro call her name. She quickly looked up to see Neuro standing above her, giving her a look she couldn't quite tell what it meant.

"Neuro, I-"

"You should leave," He advised. "Aya's possessed space will drop soon, and it wouldn't be convenient to get caught in the confused riot that will start once it does." Without another word he turned his back to her.

"Neuro wait!" Yako gasped, but before she could stop him, he disappeared, just like he had before, leaving her alone again as her voice echoed through the quiet theatre. Turning her gaze downward she watched as Aya's bloody corpse dissolved into dust that scattered through the air.

"I should go," She told herself, standing with difficulty. She looked at the space Neuro had occupied for a moment before vanishing before her eyes again.

"…I'm sorry."

* * *

It wasn't even a day later and the mysterious incident of thousands of people waking up in the city's largest concert halls was all over the news. Yako sat on her couch, flipping through the channels, each one seeming to be talking about the strange phenomenon. Groaning, she turned the TV off just as a noise resonated from her room. Peeking over the couch, it didn't seem anyone was there, but the chance Neuro was back was enough to force her off the couch, no matter how much it hurt to move around. But once she finally limped to her room, she came to find it was empty, as usual. Her shoulders slumped in defeat as she trudged over to her bed and slowly sat down.

"Maybe he isn't going to come back," She muttered to herself, looking to the window that, to her surprise, was closed. Figuring the wind blew it closed she shrugged and shuffled over and re-opened it, looking out at the city below. Allowing her arms to hang out the now-open window, she hung over her windowsill, closed her eyes and listened to the echoes of the city sounds below.

"It isn't smart to leave your window like that, worm." Came a voice. Gasping, Yako turned around quickly- ignoring how much it stung to move so suddenly- coming face to face with the green eyes she'd been waiting to see for days. "You don't know what could break in." Yako opened her mouth to speak, but she couldn't find the words to say. The entire time, she had carefully prepared what she would say to him if he ever were to return, but now that he was there she couldn't think of a single word to say to him.

"I…" She muttered, a lump in her throat forming. She wanted to reach out and embrace him, but what Akane had told her before repeated itself in her mind.

_"As long as you're the Ultimate Mystery's container, he'll only see you as a tool to get what he wants."_

Yako shook her head, turning her eyes to the floor.

"Welcome back," She mumbled, jumping as she felt him grasp the top of her head and force her to look upward at him.

"And why, might I ask, are you crying?"

"I'm not crying!" Yako muttered as she pulled away, furiously wiping at her eyes. "I'm just…" She looked back up to him, staring into his eyes only making her want to cry more. "I missed you." Neuro looked down at her surprised for a moment before taking his jet-black scarf and used it to dry her eyes.

"Don't waste your foolish emotions on me, slug," He told her. And even though he ended it with calling her some sort of insect again, something in his voice sounded different- almost softer, somehow. But Yako couldn't see his face through the scarf he'd used to wipe her tears away, and by the time he pulled away he was facing away from her, making his way onto the ceiling.

"Neuro…"

"You did excellent today." Neuro cut her off as he situated himself above her bed. "Continue to perform at that level and you might become a step above a simple pest." Yako felt a warm feeling in her chest swell, just like the times when he'd say she was special to him and that she was more than just a normal human. But, despite how good it felt, she shook it off. She'd seen what happened when she let her emotions get in the way of things- she wasn't going to risk it again. Neuro was pleased, that was all that mattered.

"I will."

* * *

"You certainly had me worried there for a second, Yako," Godai sighed at the end of the photo shoot, looking like he was nursing a headache. "I was starting to think you're period of usefulness to the company had ended."

"No, I was just in a little slump, that's all." Yako assured him, not sure if she should feel insulted or not.

"Well, don't let it happen again. We can't risk loosing another model." He groaned, eyes traveling to Neuro, who was waiting for Yako outside the hallway that led to the dressing room.

"Yako," He continued just before she could retreat. "That man you always bring with you- is he your boyfriend?" Yako looked at him in surprise for a moment before softly laughing and shaking her head.

"No, he's not," She explained, looking over to Neuro with a sad smile. "He's… just someone I like having around."

* * *

"Heh, those two certainly got to prove their foolishness, scrambling for the Ultimate Mystery like a desperate pair of starving dogs." A pair of lips smirked in the darkness. "That spoiled brat Hime thought she could rely on humans to do all her work and that airhead Aya thought she could do it all by herself. They totally ignored the most important piece to this puzzle, but I'll use it in a way that will easily help me in obtaining the Ultimate Mystery _and_ finally breaking that prideful servant, Neuro."


	11. Shackles

Yako couldn't remember a time when she'd felt so relaxed. That day's photo shoot had gone down without incident, the weather was perfect and, to top it all off, it had been almost over a week since she had seen head or tail of any demon after the Ultimate Mystery. In the back of her mind she knew she was far from being out of the woods and being too relaxed was never a good thing, but with each passing day it was as if her defenses were getting lower and lower and it was almost like it was a good thing.

"I could get used to this…" She sighed happily to herself, sprawled out of the apartment buildings rooftop. It had been ages since she had ventured up there- the last time she remembered ever having done so was when she had first moved into the apartment. But, with everything out of the way, there was nothing else better to do then to take a catnap. Better yet, take a catnap in a place Neuro wasn't aware she hung around.

Being around Neuro lately had started to become suffocating. She could tell herself a thousand times that wasting her feelings on someone who would never return them wasn't a healthy thing and she'd still feel her heart race whenever she woke up in the morning to find him staring back at her. She'd still feel the strongest urge to reach out and take his hand. She'd still feel jealous whenever Akane would hang around and shamelessly do all the things she wanted to do but couldn't. It was slowly driving her mad that she couldn't just forget all about her feelings, and the ever-growing peace that she was enjoying was also killing her. When they were faced by demons, there were thousands of things she could think of that could take her mind off of him, but, with nothing but work to distract her- which was becoming more and more easy to do- she would always come right back to thinking the same exact thing.

She liked Neuro, and there was nothing she could do.

Groaning, she opened her eyes and sat up, just in time to see Neuro climb over the guard railing that surrounded the rooftop. Great, another place she was sure she could try and be alone exposed.

"Letting your guard down in a place like this wouldn't end so well for you, worm," Neuro noted as she stood up and dusted herself off, trying to busy her vision with other things around the roof instead of looking at Neuro.

"Letting my guard down?" She muttered. "We haven't been attacked for days! I, at least, have some right to take time to relax, don't I?" Yako turned her eyes up to him for a split second just in time to watch him raise an eyebrow.

"Why are you here, anyway?" She asked angrily, changing the subject.

"Heh, you'll know soon enough." Neuro chuckled darkly, looking behind her as if there were someone there. Curiosity getting the best of her, Yako turned around just as a hush fell over the city, the glairing afternoon sunlight becoming a darker shade of red. A cold shiver ran up her spine as she bit her lip to suppress a gasp of surprise. "But this _certainly_isn't the time to relax."

A dark chuckle echoed from behind her that filled her with dread. Despite her fears she dared to look over her shoulder, meeting the gaze of a much taller man looking at her and Neuro with an all-too amused smile spread across his lips. He didn't seem like the other demons they had met- in fact, if it weren't for the possessed space, he would have appeared to be a normal human, the only thing warping him from being otherwise being the sick grin that seemed to grow as she slowly turned all the way around the face him.

"You certainly took your sweet time coming to meet me, Neuro," The man sneered, looking to the demon who had now come to occupy Yako's side. "I've been waiting for hours for you to finally sense my presence. I suppose that would be those unperfected powers of yours at work."

"You're a fool for waiting around," Neuro snarled. "And you're even more the fool for waiting around without any sort of demon tool. Either you're that full of yourself or you're in a hurry to die." Despite the fact that Neuro pointed out the man had nothing to defend himself with, he only laughed again in response. Neuro glowered at the man's response, hand pulling at the glove that covered his opposing hands claws.

"You're quite mistaken, Neuro. I certainly haven't come to face you empty handed," The man smirked, eyeing Neuro's motion to unveil his clawed hand. "But if you wish to blindly make the first move I'll happily oblige you." Neuro raised an eyebrow, his frown pulling at the edges of his mouth. Yako looked between the two of them, feeling uneasy watching Neuro's expression grow more enraged while the other man's seemed to grow more amused.

"Well?" The man asked, "Aren't you going to use those bulky talons of yours to slice me in two? You certainly look like you're itching to do so. Why not give in?" A low, almost animal-like grown surfaced from Neuro's throat, his grip tightening on the cusp of his glove. Yako had never seen Neuro like this before. His expression was much more angry than she had ever seen. By now, she wasn't sure who she was more afraid of. "Attack me!" The tightness in Neuro's body loosened as he finally revealed his clawed hand. Something didn't seem right; the man looked much too calm and much too relaxed to appear he was going to jump out of the way.

"Wait!" Yako gasped just as Neuro charged forward, her plea for him to stop going unnoticed. "Neuro, stop!" The man chuckled once more, turning his eyes to the ground for a moment before looking back up again, eyes gleaming in an inhuman way. And, all at once, Neuro stopped, outstretched clawed hand inches away from the man's smiling face. Neuro blinked in confusion, trying to move his frozen body with no avail while Yako looked on, lost. First, he'd been driven to a level of anger she'd never seen him exhort and now he'd stopped his attack completely. Neither action was like Neuro at all.

"Oh my, it seems I've forgotten to introduce myself." The man laughed, watching Neuro struggle with amusement. "My name is HAL- but you, Neuro, can call me master."

"Mas…ter?" Neuro spat out with difficulty, his sad attempts to struggle free from the invisible force that held him bound becoming less and less.

"I told you, I didn't come here totally unarmed." HAL explained, walking around Neuro, who now could only follow him with his eyes. "My demon tool is none other than you."

"What?"

"You're a slave through and through, Neuro." HAL smirked, tracing his finger along one of the circlets that Neuro had around his arms. "These prove you're status as a demon- that status being someone who can only follow orders. Orders such as destroying this pitiful girl you've been idiotically protecting all this time." His cold gaze shifted from Neuro to Yako, who looked at the both of them in shock. She gasped, making a motion to summon her own demon tool.

"I wouldn't waste your energy, brat." He muttered. "I have no intention of using this slave to slaughter you just yet." Yako looked up at him in fear as he drew closer, finally stopping once they were an arms length apart. "I intend to break him before I break you." A cold grin spread across his lips. "A pity, that, to destroy such a pretty vessel." Yako flinched as he reached out his hand, as if to caress her face.

"DON'T TOUCH HER!" Neuro's voice echoed, strained and enraged, through the possessed space as HAL's fingers stopped inches from Yako's cheek. He looked over his shoulder to see Neuro, who had somehow managed to turn around to face the two of them, but not much else.

"Hmm, it seems you still have a bit of free will left, don't you?" HAL asked through clenched teeth, lowering his hand away from Yako, who stumbled backward.

"You need to go, Yako!" Neuro commanded. "You need to go, now!"

"Neuro-"

"GO!" In the blink of an eye, the possessed space vanished, the sounds of the city surrounding Yako as Neuro's final cry faintly echoed in her ears. She looked around the rooftop frantically, neither Neuro nor HAL anywhere in sight.

"Neuro!?" She called, panic heavy in her voice that had grown shaky. "Neuro!?" She dizzily searched, stumbling and tripping over her own feet as she grew more and more frightened. This couldn't be happening, there was no way! She half expected the entire scenario to be a terrifying dream, but no matter how much she willed herself to wake up, she came up unsuccessful. It had all been real, much to her dismay.

"No…" She whimpered, hands slowly reaching up to cover her face as she shook her head. "No, no, no, no, n-"

_"GO!"_

Neuro's final wish for her echoed in her mind, stopping her shivering altogether, but not her intense feelings of panic. Turning to the stairs leading back inside the apartment, she ran for them clumsily, nearly loosing her footing several times as she stumbled to the floor her room was located. But the sanctuary of her own home didn't seem welcoming. The demon, HAL, intended on using Neuro to kill her- Neuro, who knew all of her usual haunts, her room being one of them. Key in hand, she stared at the door to her room with the same amount of fear she would a demon, key barely inserted into the keyhole before she pulled it away. She couldn't stay there. Her feelings of panic growing she whipped around, taking the first few steps to run down the hallway back to the stairs only to run into someone, knocking both of them to the ground.

"Yako!" A surprised voice gasped. Yako quickly shifted her gaze upward, finding the person she'd bumped into to be Higuchi. The need to flee taking precedence over figuring out what he was doing there, she quickly got up and ran past him, the manner in which she tripped and stumbled as she sped down the hallway giving away something wasn't right.

"Yako, wait!" His call seemed distant to Yako and she didn't bother to obey or answer as she continued to flee. She had to run, she had to go…but where? Nowhere sounded safe anymore so long as the person who she had come to trust- the person who she had come to have feelings for- would come after her. It was a horrendous, sickening feeling as fear gripped her psyche tighter than it ever had.

She was blind to how far and for how long she had blindly ran. The moment she'd ran from the apartment building, it had all been a blur of crowds and buildings. The city she'd lived in for years never seemed such a jumbled mystery to her as it did then. All she could think of was the expression she'd seen on Neuro's face the moment HAL had gained control. That terrifying face that twisted and morphed the countenance of the person she thought she knew into a monster. The face she was sure she would face the next time they met.

'This can't be happening!' She kept thinking to herself. 'This can't be happening!'

An unevenness in the pavement was what finally halted her frantic and blind escape as she fell against the unforgiving cement, catching herself on her open palms and one knee that had their top layer of skin easily scraped away in the fall. The pain that sprung fourth finally brought her to as her panic ebbed away just enough that she could think clearly. Day was slowly transitioning into night, dying the sky above a brilliant warm array of colors. The crowds had dissipated by now, but she could hear the faint thud of footsteps approach her that slowed down as they drew closer. Gasping, she lifted herself up and twisted herself around to find Higuchi standing above her, hands on his knees as he panted in exhaustion. He'd followed her the whole time, and only now she could recall hearing her name being called out to her as she ran.

"Higuchi…" She mumbled as he slowly took to one knee, looking at her concerned through bangs saturated with sweat that hung in his face.

"What happened?" He finally uttered between taking in large gulps of air. "You looked so scared back at your apartment…" The feeling of panic she felt slowly became saturated by a new sense of helplessness. All words to explain to Higuchi were lost as tears finally found their way to her eyes. He was the only person who knew the truth about her situation and the last person Neuro would expect her to be with. In her steep descent downward, she desperately needed something to grasp onto. She'd dragged him into her mess enough as it was, but there seemed nothing more she could do.

Like an infant would reach out to its' parents, she reached out and clutched at Higuchi's shirt, tears spilling over down her cheeks as the words she wanted to tell him became sobs.

'Please…' she thought to herself. '…Help me.'

* * *

Yako buried her face in her drawn up knees, wrapping her arms around her legs. She wanted to give herself to sleep- her aching body and heavy eyelids begged her to, but the paralyzing fear she felt kept her awake.

Higuchi had taken her back to his apartment before she finally managed to tell him with difficulty about her new situation. She knew she was troubling him and she knew by the looks he gave her that he was just as frightened as he was before when Aya confronted the two of them. She felt horrible for it, but she had no other options. And, despite it all, Higuchi had willingly opened his own apartment to her, even going as far as allowing her to sleep in his bed while he moved to the couch in his living room.

"Neuro…" She found herself mumbling, her sleep-deprived mind acting on it's own. A soft tap resonated from outside as if to answer. It was a trained response for her to spring up and look to where the noise had come from since so many times Neuro would return to her apartment at all hours of the night and not hesitate to break her window yet again if she didn't rise to answer. She looked to the sliding glass door adjacent to Higuchi's bed that led out onto the small terrace outside. A shadow stretched across the floor, the familiar shape filling her with a mixture of excitement and fear. Despite her better judgment, she stumbled out of bed and threw open the door, tears she thought were dried up threatening to stream from her eyes once more.

"Neuro!" She gasped, looking up at him in surprise. The frightening face she'd seen on him before was no longer there, leaving behind the face she'd come to know. Before she could reach out and wrap her arms around him, he gave her a warning glare as his eyes glowed a threatening green that stopped her in her tracks as the familiar sense of fear returned.

"Touching me right now wouldn't be wise, worm," he hissed. "I can't promise I'll be able to hold it back."

"Hold what back?" She asked, taking a cautious step backward. Neuro's mouth twisted into a sickened frown as he wrapped his arms around himself.

"The urge I have that's begging me to rip you apart," He told her, lowering his gaze. "It's settled, for now, but maybe that's only because my master is allowing it." He spat out the word "master" in a venomous way as his fingers coiled tightly around his arms.

"Why are you here?" Yako asked. "If it's so dangerous for you to see me why are you here!?" A lump slowly started to form in her throat as she spoke.

"I came to warn you!" Neuro growled through clenched teeth. "The next time you see me… I'll be just like every demon you and I have faced before. I'll stop at nothing to rip you open and tear you apart…" He paused, regaining his feigned composure that had begun to waver just by talking about what his body wanted to do to her. "When that time comes…I want you to run!"

"Run? But-"

"Don't question me, worm!" He barked, his face slowly beginning to reveal how much he was straining himself not to lay a hand on her. "I… I wouldn't be able to stand myself if I hurt you…I refuse to lose you again!"

"Again?" Yako questioned. Neuro's eyes grew wide in shock as if her were just as surprised as her by what he had just uttered.

"I've said too much," he muttered, backing away. "It would be wise if you used that useless organ taking up space in your skull and heeded my warning!"

"Wait!" She gasped, reaching out in desperation just as he disappeared, leaving behind a small flurry of feathers that fluttered to the ground. Her arm remained outstretched as she looked to where he once stood with confusion.

"Yako, is everything alright!?" Higuchi gasped as he bounded into the room. "What happened, I heard you…" Looking around, everything seemed fine: just Yako looking outside, a pile of feathers littering the ground at her feet.

"What did he mean…" She thought aloud to herself. "…By again?"

* * *

"So, are you going to tell me who we're looking for now?" Higuchi asked as the two of them took a rest at a park bench. Yako sighed in defeat, looking to him apologetically. She'd taken off work that day and was much too afraid to venture out on her own and, as a result, had torn him from work as well. He, at least, deserved an explanation after coming with her without so much as an argument.

"A demon… a friend of Neuro's," she made sure to further explain who it was they were looking for as a look of fear crossed his face at the very mention of the word "demon". "There's something I need to ask her, but I guess she only shows up when Neuro is around."

"Why's that?"

"She's obsessed with him to an unhealthy degree." Yako explained venomously. "She clings to him even though it's more than obvious he doesn't want her around."

"NOT TRUE!" A sudden, loud response to her description of the demon girl she'd come to loath caused both Yako and Higuchi to leap frantically away. Standing there, with her hands on her hips and an annoyed scowl on her face, was Akane. "I most certainly am NOT obsessed!" For once in her life, Yako felt relieved to have had a once-private conversation interrupted by her.

"Finally, I've been looking for you all day!" Yako exclaimed. Akane wrinkled her nose in disgust at the prospect Yako had been looking for her.

"Well whatever you want, I'm not sticking around to-"

"It's about Neuro!" Yako interrupted, stopping Akane in her tracks, who had begun to turn to leave. "I'm sure you've heard about his condition by now." Akane turned back around, eyes turned to the pavement. The worry on her face told Yako she was right.

"He came to visit me…warn me last night." Yako explained. "And before he left he said he didn't want to lose me again." The same look of surprise Neuro had when he had said the very words appeared on Akane's face as well. "What did he mean by that!?" Akane bit her lip, looking unsure. "Tell me!"

"Alright, alright, just calm down!" Akane angrily shouted. "I guess there's no hiding it now that he had to go and tell you that."

"No hiding _what_?" Yako asked sharply. Akane sighed, taking in a long breath before giving her answer.

"You remember how I told you about the girl Neuro fell in love with, that died as a result?" She waited for Yako to shake her head before continuing. "The truth is, she never died. In fact, she's still very much alive…"

"What?" Yako gasped. "Where is she? Who is she!?"

"She's you, you idiot!" Akane spat. "The girl Neuro fell in love with back then was you!"


	12. Recall

"That…" Yako gaped, staring at Akane, who's face seemed to grow more and more annoyed after every second that passed after she had revealed the shocking, unbelievable truth. "That can't be right!"

"What makes you think I'm lying?" Akane asked in a bitter tone, raising an eyebrow. "The fact that you're the girl Neuro fell in love with should be fantastic news."

"But…I don't remember any of it!" Yako exclaimed. "If I met someone like Neuro, I would have remembered it!" Akane sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose between her fingers.

"Do you honestly think you were allowed to remember?" She asked Yako, looking aggravated. "Wiping your memories clean of Neuro was a crueler punishment than killing you. The fact that the girl Neuro practically went mad over would never recall the memory of him again tore him apart more than you being sent to heaven with those precious memories intact."

Yako stared at Akane, disbelief still heavy in her gaze. Heaving an annoyed sigh, Akane took her by the hand, looking over her shoulder to Higuchi, who was looking on confused.

"I'll be borrowing this for a moment," she informed him, and before Yako could speak against it the air around them became silent, the fading sunlight becoming washed over by a green hue. At first, Akane remained silent, her lips tightly pressed together as she looked angrily at her feet.

"I'm a fool for allowing you to remember these things," she finally uttered. "It's forbidden to restore memories, especially those that Satan himself dismantled. I hope you realize the situation I'm putting myself in."

"Then why are you doing this?" Yako asked. "If you're forbidden to, then-" Akane cut her off, covering Yako's mouth with an open palm, eyes gleaming with anger.

"You'll never understand… All those years of watching Neuro suffer because of you… All that time, all I wanted to do was find you and punish you for the things_ you_ caused!" Yako jumped in fear as Akane's long nails grew ever-so-slightly in size, their sharpened tips mere millimeters away from piercing her skin and jabbing out her eyes. "But, I came to find, the only reason Neuro truly suffered was because you weren't thinking of him all those years he was thinking of you. And now, he'll be forced against his will to try and tear you apart, and there's a strong chance that will be so…" Yako's eyes widened as Akane slowly lifted her hand from off of her mouth, lifting her arm slightly so her hand now hovered over her forehead, obscuring Yako's vision. "If that happens to be the case, I want to ease _his_suffering in any way I can." Her final words seemed to echo and fade to Yako, who began to feel a sense of dizziness as her body grew numb.

"When you wake up…" She could just barely hear Akane saying, "…What you do from then on is up to you."

* * *

_"Honestly, Yako, how many tests are you going to skip before you're satisfied!?" Yako could hear Kanae shout as the cold night air rushed by her. Her concerned friend leaned out the window of Higuchi's pickup and yelled over the din to her as she stood in the trunk, eyes blankly focused on the road that blazed passed. Her lack of response got her another frustrated groan from Kanae, who continued her lecture._

_"At this rate you're never going to graduate, even_

_withcram school. And God knows you don't even bother to try there, too!"_

_"Kanae, shouldn't you go a little easy on her?" She could hear Higuchi meekly speak up from inside. "I mean, it hasn't been too long since…you know…" Yako tightly squeezed her eyes shut in annoyance, chin resting on the cold metal roof of the truck. It had been slightly over a month since the death of her parents, who had met their demise in a traffic accident. The horrific scene was still fresh in her mind, no matter how much time had passed: the crowed of people that circled the accident like it was some sort of street show- the feeling of her heart skipping a beat seeing her parents totaled car, it's mechanical underbelly in the air- the cracking of glass beneath her feet as she ran towards the accident. She could even clearly remember how loudly she had screamed her parent's names as the police dragged her away from the wreckage. She vigorously shook her head, the visions making her feel nauseous._

_Now she lived with her grandparents- at least until she found her own place. They had been supportive and positive the entire time- it wasn't their fault she was slowly loosing interest in anything and everything. The absence of the two people who had motivated her all her life to succeed were no longer there to see her move forward- No longer there to congratulate her about her grades and support her achievements. She felt it would be selfish to continue to do so many good things and not have them their to see any of them._

_"…It still doesn't mean she should just flunk out!" She could hear Kanae angrily speak up from inside. "We promised to graduate together, remember!?"_

_Yako sighed, looking back ahead of the car just in time to catch something stumble into the road and right in the path of the truck._

_"Look out!" She gasped, smacking the roof with her palm as Higuchi slammed on the breaks and Kanae cried out in fright. The sudden stop almost throwing Yako out of the trunk, she straightened up and looked to see exactly what they had averted hitting. A boy who seemed about their age stood in the gleam of the headlights, sickly blond hair hanging in his face, nothing on but a dirty, oversized hooded jacket. He looked at the vehicle blankly for a moment as Kanae leaned out the window._

_"Hey, watch where you're going, crazy kid!" She angrily yelled. "What do you think you're doing!?" The boy continued to stare, refusing to give up a single word as he turned forward again and continued to cross the street._

_"Hey!" Kanae called once more, her shout being totally ignored. "What a weird guy… Honestly, people really need to pay attention where they're going!" Yako watched the boy vanish in a darkened alleyway, her vision tracing back to where he had stood before. Something catching the glow of the headlights caught her eye: a deep, crimson puddle remained where the boy once was, smaller spots creating a trail away from the road and towards where the boy had gone. A wave of concern overcame her as she stared into the darkness where he had stumbled off to._

_"Well he's gone now- at least we didn't hit him." Higuchi sighed, seeming extremely relieved._

_"True, it could have turned out worse." Kanae agreed, looking outside just in time to see Yako leap from the trunk without so much as a word and run in the direction the boy had gone._

_"Hey, Yako! Where are you going!? Hey!"_

_Yako ran into the darkness, pausing as her eyes slowly adjusted. She could hear the sound of heavy breathing as she slowly made out a figure crouched in the darkness. A quick shiver of fear running up her spine, she slowly approached the figure, her terror quickly vanishing once she found the person sitting there to be the boy who didn't seem to realize her presence._

_"Are you hurt?" Was what she finally asked as she crouched down in front of him, the boy jerking upward to face her. From behind the hair that hung in his face and even in the darkness she could see his eyes gazing back at her. They were an unnatural shade of green: a color that would belong to some sort of storybook creature rather than a person. She jumped in surprise, almost loosing her balance. She expected him to answer, but, even though he knew she was there, he didn't say a word. He only continued to breath in a painful, labored manner that answered Yako's question._

_Her fear melted into concern once more as her eyes ran over the boy's battered body. Dark bruises ban up and down his legs, and a deep, bleeding wound profusely bled from his calf. A closer, thorough look revealed a deep, red stain on the right sleeve of his jacket- no doubt blood that had been absorbed from another wound by the thick cloth. Dried blood stained the side of the boy's face as well and the hair that hung there as his strange green eyes gazed outward in an almost dead way, looking at her, but not exactly acknowledging her. Now that she'd seen the extent of his injuries there was no way she was going to turn around and head back to her friends without him._

_"Alright, common," she mumbled, shifting around so that she was crouched beside him and nudged one of his arms over her shoulder. She firmly gripped it just enough so that he would be forced to stand as she did. Much to her surprise, he hardly put up a fight and was easily coaxed to walk in step with her as she led him back to the road._

_"Yako you-" Kanae's eyes widened as she saw who was draped over Yako's shoulder. "What? Why do you have him with you?!"_

_"He's hurt." Yako briefly explained, awaiting her friend's approval._

_"Yes, but you don't even_

_knowhim!" Kanae argued. "And how do you expect to drag that past your grandparents?" Yako remained silent, staring down Kanae, who had now turned to Higuchi._

_"Please talk some sense into this girl!" She groaned. Higuchi looked over to Yako, who looked back at him with pleading eyes._

_"If you disagree, I can always walk home. I'm not leaving him behind!" Higuchi sat in silence for a short while before sighing in defeat._

_"Fine, I guess."_

_"What? Are you serious!?" Kanae hissed. "That boy is a total stranger and you're just going to let her…" Kanae continued to lecture Higuchi as Yako took the boy around back, lifting him into the trunk of the truck with difficulty before climbing in herself._

_"Look, I'm not going to try and pry, but, before we get to my place, can you at least tell me your name?" She asked him as she sat beside him. He looked downward for a moment, seeming like he was in thought, before looking up and answering,_

_"Neuro." The name seemed like something he had just made up as opposed to an actual, legitimate name, but Yako decided to let it slide._

_"Neuro, is it?" She smiled kindly, suppressing a chuckle. "I'm Yako. It's nice to meet you, Neuro."_

_The two of them sat in silence the rest of the ride until they arrived at Yako's grandparents._

_"You're aware of what you're doing, right?" Kanae groaned as Yako walked towards her house. "You're taking a total stranger you don't know into your home. Doesn't that seem odd to you?" Yako didn't answer and continued walking, hearing Kanae groan behind her._

_"Fine! But don't come crawling to me when this whole selfless heroin business of yours turns sour!" Kanae shouted as her and Higuchi drove away. Yako sighed, looking over her shoulder at the empty street before turning back to her house. Lightly tiptoeing, she ventured onto her lawn and around the side of the house, ducking under windows and stealthily making her way to her bedroom window where she carefully rested Neuro._

_"I'll be right back, okay?" She asked him, not expecting him to respond. "Don't go anywhere!" With that, she rushed back around to the front, taking a few, cleansing breathes, trying to seem like nothing was wrong before she walked through the doors. The entryway could clearly be seen from the family room, where both her grandparents were._

_"Welcome back, Yako," Her grandma greeted happily. "How was school?"_

_"It was fine," Yako lied, putting on a fake smile for the two of them as she slipped off her shoes._

_"Yako… we got a call from your homeroom teacher…" Her grandpa told her, seeming like he wanted to sound stern, but was afraid that a single harsh word would break his granddaughter. "He said you've been skipping your tests and that your grades are slipping…" Yako looked to the both of them sadly. There wasn't any excuse she could give to the both of them about it- they certainly wouldn't understand her reasoning. That and there was the pressing matter that was Neuro, who was, hopefully, still outside her window. She didn't have time to make some sort of sugarcoated explanation._

_"I'm sorry…I… I have a lot of homework to do, can we talk about this later?" She asked them. They looked between each other, concerned._

_"A-Alright." Her grandma nodded, a pitying look heavy in her aged features. "Your bath's also ready, if you want to wash up before you do your school work."_

_"Thank you!" Yako smiled, trying not to seem like she was in a hurry as she walked away from view and down the hallway to her room. Closing the door behind her, she waited a few seconds before rushing to her window and quickly sliding it open._

_"Neuro!" She quietly called, looking down, half expecting to find he had fled. But, much to her surprise, he was still sitting under her window, looking up at her with his strange, green eyes. She sighed with relief, hopping out onto the grass and lifting him up again, slowly hoisting him into her room._

_"Thanks for waiting," she told him quietly, with a smile. He looked back at her, his face blank as usual, slowly giving her a nod._

_"I should probably get bandages for your leg," she noted, examining the injury on his calf. Blood still stained his skin but much to her surprise the wound itself seemed to have disappeared. Even the bruises she had clearly seen before seemed to have faded. She looked at his once injured legs in confusion before looking to Neuro for some sort of explanation, only to be given the same, blank look. He didn't seem as surprised at all that his battered body had somehow healed itself as she was._

_"What…" Yako muttered, eyes traveling back and fourth between his once injury and his emotionless gaze. "…What are you?" Before Neuro could answer, a low rumbling noise resonated from above them, the faint light from outside becoming blotted out, drenching the two of them in shadow. The strange noise continued, revealing itself to be a deep growl. Gasping in fear, Yako looked up to see a horned creature looming above them perched at her open window. Two glowing, red orbs looked down at the two of them, narrowing as her eyes met them. Her mouth hung agape in a silent scream as her body froze in fear despite wanting to flee from her room and away from whatever was looking back at her._

_"Don't just stand there!" Neuro finally spoke just as the shadowy creature lifted a bulky clawed hand into the air. "Get out of here!" Yako remained, his words not reaching her fear-filled brain as she watched in horror as the creature brought its claws swiftly downward as if to rip both her and Neuro in two with them. She tightly shut her eyes as the scream that finally exited her lips was cut short by a push that sent her flying backward onto her floor. A sickening splash echoed from somewhere in the room beyond her tightly closed eyes, followed by a painful grunt. Despite her crippling fear, she forced her eyes to open, the welcoming image before her being Neuro standing above her, clutching at his arm which, upon further inspection, was no longer there. She sharply gasped, eyes wide in terror to find his dismembered arm lying at her feet._

_"So, you've come to take me back, have you?" Neuro asked the creature, his voice even and calm despite his injury, his face mimicking an emotion of someone who had been given a slight scratch rather than having an entire limb lobed off. The menacing creature growled in response, lumbering forward and readying a second attack. "I hope you know I won't come quietly. I'm no longer afraid of what you intend to do to me…after all…" A twisted smirk crawled across his lips. "…I'm already dead."_

_"STOP!" Neuro jumped as something jumped in the way of the creature's second assault. It was Yako, her shaking arms spread wide and her eyes tightly shut. "PLEASE, STOP!"_

_"Idiot-!" Neuro gasped, but, much to his surprise, the creature's claws had, in fact, stopped, their blood-covered tips inches away from her face. It gurgled in frustration, its red eyes narrowing as it retracted its' hand. Slowly opening one eye and then the other, Yako watched as the terrifying creature angrily backed away, throwing the both of them a rage-filled glance before disappearing out her window._

_Her quaking legs no longer having the strength to hold her up, Yako fell to the ground, her heartbeat pounding in her ears as someone knocked on her door._

_"Yako, is everything alright in there?" She heard her grandma ask from the other side of the door. With a gasp, she turned around, the fear that had taken hold of her only growing stronger. Just as she did, however, she watched as Neuro bent down and picked up his arm that had been severed, looking at the dismembered appendage with a look of annoyance rather than pain. The edge of the severed arm seemed to liquefy before her eyes as he brought it back to where it had formally been attached, the skin, muscle and bone reaching out to where it had once been. Awestruck she watched as the arm re-attached itself, not leaving behind a single trace that it had been sliced off in the first place._

_"Yako?"_

_"I…I'm okay…" Yako stammered, her eyes fixed on Neuro, who looked back at her with an equally surprised look. "I fell… there was a spider…" Yako paused before quickly adding. "You don't need to come in, it's fine!"_

_"Alright, we were just worried." Her grandmother sighed with relief. "That was quite a scream."_

_"No…I'm fine." Yako sat in silence, eyes still fixed on Neuro, whose attention had moved to his arm, checking to see if everything worked properly._

_"I'd close that window if I were you." He finally spoke. "That thing might come back."_

_"What…what was that!?" Yako asked, her voice quivering. "And…how did you…" her eyes traveled to his arm, still perplexed as much as she was afraid._

_"I'm not from this world, and neither was that thing." He explained, standing up._

_"Then where are you from!?"_

_"Hell." Yako looked up at him, eyes widening in fear._

_"Are…are you a…?"_

_"Demon? No, not yet anyway." He groaned, shaking his head. "It takes hundreds of years for a soul damned to hell to become a demon. I'm still surprised I was able to escape."_

_"Why did you-?"_

_"For someone who has the ability to stop a demon from attacking you sure ask some stupid questions." He interrupted. "And the reason why I left should be obvious. It's better to be hunted than to suffer for all eternity." Yako watched in confusion as he walked across her room and plopped down on her bed._

_"Hey…"_

_"It's your fault for deciding to be all noble and dragging me here in the first place." Neuro smirked. "I've only seen it once, but you seem to be some sort of demon repellent and that certainly isn't something I'm just going to walk away from."_

_"But-"_

_"Don't get too worried. Once I regain the strength I lost, I'll leave you to your pathetic, little life." He told her with a grin, almost like he knew just how badly Yako's life had begun to spiral downward. She wanted nothing more than to refuse and tell him to leave. But before she even had a chance to shout the first syllable of her refusal Neuro spoke up again._

_"Thank you, by the way." He muttered, almost like the afterthought hurt his pride to say. "That attack would have turned out much differently if you hadn't found me." Yako bit her lip, her resolve wavering before dying completely. A part of her didn't want anything to do with hell or demons, but having someone being dragged back to the underworld on her conscience didn't sound very pleasant._

_"…You're welcome." She finally forced out. "But once you've regained your strength, you're gone!"_

_"You don't have to tell me- I'd hate to be cooped up in this place for longer than I should be." He chuckled, kicking up his legs and lying down on her bed. "The air in this place is so weighed down by sadness anyway- it's suffocating." Yako stared at him for a moment, waiting for him to say something else, but after a few minutes of silence, it was clear he had nothing to say to her and upon further inspection it seemed he had fallen asleep. A heavy feeling of oncoming exhaustion washed over her once she realized that this left her nowhere to sleep herself._

_"Hey…" She paused, his sleeping features stopping her from forcing him awake. Beyond his closed eyes, something about his face seemed sad- pained. She couldn't bring herself to reach out and shake him awake. Instead she backed off, groaning to herself._

_"This is going to be one long night…"_


	13. Forget

_"You don't look too hot." Kanae noted as she and Yako left the school grounds, Higuchi close behind them. Yako responded with an exhausted yawn before explaining herself._

_"I just didn't get much sleep, that's all," She told her. It wasn't a total lie- if she had to guess, she'd only gotten about two hours of shuteye. She just didn't tell her why. Neuro had claimed her bed, leaving her to try and sleep on her floor. If that wasn't enough, every, little noise that came from outside had sent fear coursing through her. God forbid the demon who had attacked before would come back and finish the job while they slept._

_"Because you were studying, I trust?" Kanae asked, raising an eyebrow. "We have that massive exam at cram school, after all." Yako felt a nervous feeling rise inside her gut. She'd completely forgotten about it. There was also the pressing matter of Neuro still dwelling in her room that needed attention. She couldn't bear to think of what would happen if her grandparents got back from the restaurant they managed before she did and found him._

_"I'm actually going to have to pass." She didn't have to look to tell Kanae's face had morphed into a frustrated frown at the very mention she wasn't going to attend. She could already feel her enraged gaze burn the side of her head. "I have things to do… for my grandparents…"_

_"You're lying, I know you are!" Kanae groaned, her voice dripping with disdain. "Do you even care about-"_

_"Kanae, calm down, maybe she's telling the truth." Higuchi interrupted, trying his best to avoid another argument addressing Yako's slipping grades._

_"You're too soft on her!" Kanae argued, turning her enraged gaze to him now._

_"I-I should probably get going." Yako lied, quickly turning around and heading in the direction of her grandparents house before anyone could stop her. "I'll see you two tomorrow!"_

_"You better not forget your promise! You're graduating with us- don't you forget!" Kanae yelled at her back as she ran away. She felt a slight pang of guilt, having been reminded of their promise they had made when they first entered high school. But at the moment, the presence of the boy from hell far outweighed her promise to graduate with Kanae. As she ran, she turned back to her two friends, giving one last wave and catching a glimpse of Higuchi holding a very angry Kanae back from pursuing her._

_"Sorry…"_

* * *

_"Neuro!" Yako called as she walked through the doors, kicking off her shoes. No one answered back, but it was to be expected. Throwing her bag haphazardly to the side, she quickly made her way down the hallway to her room and threw the door open. A feeling of shock came over her as she came to find her room unoccupied. He was no longer asleep on her bed where she had left him; the only thing that remained were the unmade bed sheets._

_"Neuro?" She looked around her room, starting to feel panicked at his absence and at the same time unsure as to why him not being in her room bothered her so. But, for some strange reason, his disappearance was unnerving._

_"Maybe he got all his strength back," She thought aloud as she straightened up after having checked under her bed, of all places. "He made it clear he didn't like staying here anyway." She heaved a loud sigh, the exam she had decided to skip now weighing heavily on her conscience._

_"Maybe if I hurry…" She began, getting up just as her window slid open. She cried out in surprise, falling back onto her bed and scooting against the wall. But, what she had expected to be the shadowy demon from the night before was Neuro, peering in at her almost as if he had enjoyed watching her freak out._

_"Back so soon?" He asked her with a smirk._

_"W-where were you!?" Yako shouted, angry and embarrassed. "Why did you leave!?"_

_"I already told you the air in this place isn't to my liking- there's no way I'd be able to lie around and wait in a place like this." He explained as he climbed in through the window, revealing a deep gash located at his side that had saturated his already worn jacket in blood. Yako couldn't help but gasp, despite knowing his injuries, no matter how severe, healed themselves. Neuro regarded the injury briefly, turning his attention back to her. "But, at least now that you're here, staying in such a place won't be as unbearable."_

_"Why bother coming here to recover if you're just going to leave and get hurt again!?" She questioned, each word weighed down by concern._

_"Things should even out eventually, if I'm careful." Yako couldn't help but groan, Neuro's lack of interest in his own well-being making her feel like a parent of some rowdy, danger-seeking child. There was honestly nothing she could do, though. While she was at school he could do as he pleased. It was certain he wouldn't listen to a word of what she said. But her lack of ability to help him in any way forced her to focus on the small, unimportant things she actually could help, the main focus being his one piece of clothing: his tattered and now blood-soaked jacket. It didn't seem to bother him in the slightest, but it sure bothered her._

_"Wait here," She told him, making a motion like she had just told a dog to "stay". Exiting her room, she briskly walked into the spare room of the house where she knew some of her parent's old clothes had been stored. She hesitated as she knelt down before one of the drawers that contained some of her father's clothes, feeling like she was defiling a grave site._

_"I'm sorry," She muttered, straining herself to open it and pull out a dress shirt and some pants. Neuro was somewhat tall for the age she assumed he was, so she imagined the selection would fit him to some degree. Apologizing one last time and promising she'd wash the clothes when she was done, she rushed back to her room, shoving the clothes into Neuro's arms, who looked from what she had given to her with a lost look in his eyes._

_"Put these on." She told him bluntly, quickly leaving the room and shutting the door before he could ask her why and so that he could change in private. "And don't get too much blood on them!" She shouted through the door as an after thought. Turning back to the empty hallway, she waited until she heard the sound of cloth shifting and falling to the floor before she left, finding herself walking into the small room near the entryway that contained her parent's shrine. She found herself wandering in there from time to time- despite how much it hurt to keep on being reminded they weren't around- usually to apologize for things. And, oh, she certainly had plenty to apologize for. Ungracefully dropping to her knees before the shrine and the photo of her parents lovingly embracing one another that sat before her, she closed her eyes and pressed her hands together in prayer._

_'I'm sorry I skipped another important test. I know how much you'd hate for me to skip such a thing.' She thought to herself, getting the minor bits of her reason for visiting out of the way. "And I'm also sorry for bringing such a troublesome person into this house. Please understand, I can't just let him wander around the streets like-"_

_"What are you doing?" A familiar voice asked her. Yako gasped, opening her eyes and looking up to see Neuro, clad in the clothes she had given him, standing next to the shrine, holding the photo of her parents and studying it closely._

_"Put that down!" She snapped, quickly leaping to her feet. Neuro looked back to her confused, like he didn't know why she was reacting in such a way to him removing her parent's photo from the shrine. She snatched it from his hands angrily and set it back carefully in it's rightful place._

_"They're the reason the air in this house is so suffocating," Neuro told her, seeming almost amused._

_"What?"_

_"You certainly can't feel it, but someone who's experienced death first hand certainly can." He explained, walking around to face the shrine. "Your inability to let go of your loved ones after death isn't a healthy thing for you or for them."_

_"I can't just forget them, they were my parents!"_

_"I didn't say forget about them, idiot," He said in an acidic tone. "You should let them move on instead of tightening your grip around their passing and what could have been. It keeps a piece of their souls trapped here and keeps them from fully enjoying the paradise they entered once they passed." Yako stared up at him, feeling a sense of guilt wash over her as she looked from him to her parent's shrine._

_"I'm sure it's not a simple thing for people like you to do," he continued. "But keeping things this way is selfish, I'm sure by now you realize…" Turning to Yako he came to find she had begun to quietly sob. She hid her face in her hands as her shoulders shook._

_"I'm sorry…" She muttered. "I…I didn't…" She could hear Neuro groan over her sobs, which was something she'd expected him to do, but what she didn't expect was for him to rest his hand on her shoulder in attempts to comfort her in a passive way._

_"You don't need to apologize," he told her. "I'm sure your mother and father will be happy enough with you allowing them to pass on." Yako sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand._

_"Thank you…"_

_"Don't thank me, stupid," He grunted, the bite in his voice returning as he removed his hand from her shoulder and turned for the door. "I'd rather you not." Yako remained silent for a moment, looking down at the floorboards before looking back to Neuro._

_"Do you know this because someone wouldn't let you pass on?" She asked. Neuro responded with a sad-sounding chuckle, looking over his shoulder at her._

_"Don't be stupid. No one mourns a soul bound for hell."_

* * *

_The days spent with Neuro seemed like an eternity to Yako. Even in the short time leaving him in her room in the morning and finding him waiting outside her window for her when she returned had come to be some sort of routine. She could feel herself growing closer to him despite the fact Neuro hardly allotted enough emotions to confirm he felt the same way. She'd become worried when he'd return with yet another injury, she'd become content falling asleep in the same room as him –he'd yet to give up the bed to her at all, though- and she'd also feel embarrassment when he started waiting for her outside of her cram school._

_"Ooooh, I spy Yako's stalker!" One of the girls piped up at the end of class, her hands cupped around her face that was pressed against the window. A few other girls parroted the girl, chanting the nickname they'd all come to know Neuro by: Yako's stalker. Yako felt her face grow warm as she rushed to the window to confirm she wasn't just being teased. But, alas, there he was, looking up at them as if he knew he was being spied on._

_"I told you, you shouldn't have picked him up that day," Kanae scolded, walking next to Yako to take a peak herself. "Now he's going to follow you around like a lost puppy."_

_"Heh, I think she likes the attention!" The girl who had spotted Neuro chuckled. Yako groaned, her blush intensifying as she pushed herself away from the glass and grabbed her bag. She could hear a few people laugh behind her, Kanae included, as she began to storm out._

_"You know what?" Yako asked, pausing in the doorway and turning around. "Maybe I do like the attention." She felt even more embarrassed saying it aloud as she continued her rushed exit, briefly catching a glimpse of Higuchi who was looking at her horrified._

_"Ooooh, Yako's got a crush!" She heard someone jeer as she left, picking up her pace the closer she got to the cram school's exit._

_"You don't have to wait for me here, you know!?" Yako moaned as she walked out the doors to meet Neuro. "You even said yourself it's become easier to stay inside my house, you can just wait there!"_

_"I could," Neuro smirked. "But that embarrassed face of yours is so priceless, it makes up for being cooped up all day."_

_"Don't lie, you hardly stay in my room when I'm gone these days." Yako felt a twinge of sadness. The fact Neuro was residing in her room less and less –sometimes to the point where he'd sometimes be gone before she woke up for school- and coming back with fewer wounds meant he was getting his strength back. Which meant he would soon have no reason to stay with her._

_"Either way, it's a sight to see," Neuro chuckled just as the sound of someone opening a window above them resonated, followed by a chorus of laughter._

_"Yako and her stalker sitting in a tree!" The girls leaning out the window began to chant. "F-U-C-"_

_"Let's go…" Yako murmured, feeling her face grow hot as he led Neuro away from the building and the mocking chant that continued until they were out of sight. The two of them walked in silence after having escaped the jeers of her classmates. In her mind, Yako desperately wanted to ask Neuro when he was going to leave, but she was afraid of the answer. It seemed better to remain ignorant to when he'd leave her side than to have the actual fact eat away at her._

_"Yako." Neuro called over the din of passing cars, breaking the silence between them._

_"Huh?" Yako looked over her shoulder, trying to hide the saddened look on her face._

_"Can you let go?" The question didn't fully register in her mind at first- to her it seemed he was asking her if she could let him go when it came time for him to leave. But after a few seconds she realized he was talking about his hand she was still tightly holding._

_"Oh! Sorry, I didn't realize…" She apologized, keeping her hand wrapped around his for a few seconds more before relinquishing it to him. Turning back around, she clasped her own hands together, trying to imitate the warm feeling she felt holding his hand. It didn't feel the same at all._

_Once they arrived at her grandparents house they followed their usual routine: Neuro went around back, leaving Yako to walk through the front doors alone and greet her grandparents and blame her rush to get back to her room on homework. Like always, she executed the lie perfectly and, like always, when she got to her room, Neuro was already there, waiting for her. He sat, perched on her windowsill and looking outside. He looked over his shoulder, acknowledging he knew she was there, and turned back to staring outside._

_"I'm sure even you've realized it by now," He began. "But my time of my parting is drawing closer. Soon, I won't have a reason to stay in this place anymore." Yako felt her heart sink, her brain flying into a panic at his words. She knew before he had said them that they were true, but hearing him say them made her feel almost frightened._

_"You don't have to…I mean you even said yourself, it's like demons refuse to attack you here!" She frantically answered. "Why not stay here?"_

_"If I stay in one place for too long, they'll be able to pinpoint my location and send more than weak fodder after me." Neuro explained, throwing Yako an annoyed look over his shoulder. "Eventually, there will come a time where whatever's protecting me and you from being attacked will fade."_

_"But…" Yako was at a loss for words as she felt the familiar warmth of tears gathering just behind her eyes._

_"But what?" He asked, still facing in the other direction._

_"I don't want you to go!" She shouted, unable to keep herself from saying the words. She didn't want him to leave. In the beginning, it wouldn't have made a difference if he stayed or left, but now it felt like he was occupying a space in her heart that had been empty for some time, and the very thought of him leaving and that spot being empty again hurt her._

_"Don't be so selfish," Neuro hissed, now fully turned to her, his abnormally green eyes looking back at her with disdain. "What possible reason do you have that would make it a good idea to stay here?" Yako bit her lip, unable to tell him. If she told him she had come to like him, he most likely wouldn't understand. From what she'd witnessed, Neuro lacked the emotional range to understand what it meant to be in love with someone. But his glare was demanding some sort of answer, and if she couldn't tell him, she'd have to show him._

_"I…" She stammered, taking a few unsteady steps forward until she was close enough to reach out and clutch the fabric of his shirt in her hands. Neuro watched her in surprise, but did nothing to stop her as she continued moving forward, her hands still desperately clutching at his shirt. "I…"_

_'What are you doing?' She asked herself bitterly. 'Do you honestly think doing this will change his mind?'_

_Just as her face was inches away from his, her resolve wavered and she began to pull away, trying to hide her face in shame._

_"Never mind, I-" She gasped as she felt Neuro pull her back, one hand on her shoulder the other grasping her waist. Before she could comprehend what was happening, his lips locked with hers as he pulled her closer. Thousands of questions swarmed her thoughts as she reached out again, hands finding his shirt again as she clutched the cloth in her fingers. She wasn't sure how to react, but her body seemed to react all on it's own, kissing him back in an almost desperate manner. Was this really happening?_

_The seconds that passed seemed like hours before Neuro pulled away, breaking the kiss. Yako couldn't help but lean forward, as if she were silently begging for more._

_"Please…" She mumbled. "Stay."_

_She didn't know what to expect Neuro to do, but out of all things he could have done she didn't expect him to push her to the ground. Feeling shocked and hurt, she pushed herself from off the floor just in time to see the shadows in her room bend and stretch, peeling themselves from her floor and walls. And in the next instant the dark shapes darted at Neuro, some restraining him, others piercing his flesh. And, before Yako could scream, another tentacle-like shadow reached out from the tangled mess and wrapped around her mouth, silencing her. He muffled screams continued as she tried and failed to reach Neuro, who seemed too much in shock to speak._

_"How crafty of you to hide yourself in a place where none of my minions can attack," a dark, deep voice chuckled. Yako twisted her head to see a tall figure step out from the shadows, revealing himself to be a tall man with long, black hair. At first glance, he seemed like a normal human, but something about him seemed off and it sent a shiver up Yako's spine._

_"S… Sata-" Neuro gasped, his words cut off as another manipulated shadow curled tightly around his throat._

_"You recovered your strength long ago, you fool, you could have left at any time," the man sneered, approaching Neuro. "But instead, you hid behind this girl like a coward long enough that the problem of your escape escalated to where I, myself had to come and fetch you." The man smirked, tightly grasping Neuro's chin and lifting his head to that he could look him in the eyes as he struggled to fill his lungs with air._

_"Or maybe you decided to stay… for a different reason." His grin grew wider as he turned to face Yako, who's eyes were full of tears brought on by fear. She screamed something that was muffled by the shadow gagging her, and tried to back away as he approached her._

_"You should feel lucky. If you were anyone else I wouldn't think twice about simply ridding this would of your existence after all of the things you've witnessed." He chuckled as he reached down to tightly grasp her head. She only thrashed for a second, her attempts to escape his grasp coming to an abrupt halt as her body became numb. "Ridding you of all your memories of having ever met this pathetic rat is the most I can do. Fitting, since he'll be able to watch the person he fell so far for live her life as if he never existed." Yako's eyes widened before drooping sleepily, her thoughts becoming fuzzy and what else that was said becoming much too saturated in echoes to hear._

_"Yako!" She heard someone shout as her vision was clouded by darkness. She knew that voice, or at least she thought she did. But for the life of her she couldn't remember whom the voice belonged to._

* * *

_Yako woke up with a start, picking herself off of her bedroom floor. It was as if she'd just had a terrifying nightmare, but she couldn't remember what it was._

_"I must have fallen asleep," She muttered to herself, slowly rising to her feet and looking to her bag she had carelessly thrown to the floor, her homework scattered about the ground._

_"Oh, yeah, that's right." She groaned, walking over to the messy pile and picking it up in her hands. "Cram school overloaded us with homework." She looked at the handful of papers bitterly, wanting nothing more than to just toss them to the side and crawl into bed. The promise she had made to her friends made her act otherwise as she walked over to her desk._

_'It's strange…' She thought to herself. 'It's like I'm forgetting something…'_

* * *

Yako gasped, snapping back to reality. Akane had gone, leaving her looking blankly in front of her.

"Yako, are you alright?" Higuchi asked, "What happened, where did that girl go?" Yako opened her mouth to speak but all she managed to utter was a quiet, "Ah…" as tears began to fall from her eyes. She remembered everything, down to the very last detail.

"Yako!" Higuchi gasped as she fell to her knees and sobbed. "Yako, what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry…" She sniffled, hiding her face in her hands. "I'm so sorry."

But as she sobbed Yako didn't hear the sound of approaching footsteps until the air around her and Higuchi became dead quiet. The words Neuro had told her passed through her head briefly.

_"When that time comes…I want you to run!"_

'I'm sorry, Neuro,' She thought to herself. 'I can't.'


	14. Master

"Well, this certainly is a surprise," HAL chuckled darkly. "After the warning I allowed my slave to give to you, I would have thought you'd have turned your tail and fled." Yako shakily stood as he laughed, wiping away her tears as she looked up to face her foe. HAL stood a short distance away, looking back at her with a wide and amused grin on his face. At his side stood Neuro, but the condition he was in certainly wasn't what it used to be. He no longer had the posture he once had, his back arching slightly and arms dangling forward. His eyes looked forward, half lidded and blank, his tired gaze unwaveringly fixed on her.

"Neuro…" Yako looked back at him with a pitying look. The person who stood before her wasn't the Neuro she'd come to know, and it hurt to look at him now. She expected him to do something- anything that reminded her of how he'd been before, but he only stared at her silently- just a servant awaiting his master's order, otherwise he wouldn't do anything at all.

"Wait, isn't he-?" Yako whipped around, her attention now focused on Higuchi who had, once again, been trapped inside a possessed space along with her.

"Higuchi, you need to get out of here!" She shouted. "I need you to get somewhere where you won't get hurt!"

"But-" Higuchi's words were cut off as Yako was forced to tear her attention away from him to face Neuro, who'd been given the command to attack. She nearly dropped her blades in surprise as she summoned them, barely having a second to raise them up and block Neuro's blow. His menacing claws and her demon tool clashed together, sending a shower of sparks through the air.

"No buts! Just go!" Yako barked, feeling herself and her weapons being pushed backward as Neuro pressed forward. She spied Higuchi in the corner of her eye, still standing behind her, petrified. "I SAID GO!" A quick feeling of relief came and went through her mind as she made out him finally turning around and running in the opposite direction. Whatever feeling of calm she felt was quickly erased, however, as Neuro wildly swung his other clawed hand at her. Gasping she left backward, feeling the sharp tips of his claws tearing her clothes and lightly grazing the skin of her stomach. She stumbled backward, almost loosing her footing in the process and barely had enough time to find her balance before Neuro attacked again. He continued forcing her backward, and each time, she narrowly blocked each of his attacks. He left no openings for her to fight back, but even if he had, she knew she was far from having the will to even think of harming him. After having her eyes opened to how much she had hurt him in the past, there was no way she could make a move to harm him now.

"Neuro, please, you have to stop this!" She found herself pleading as the sharp noise of her blades and Neuro's claws colliding rang through the air. "I know you're in there somewhere- you need to snap out of it!"

"You're much more of a fool than I thought if you think talking to him will do any good." HAL sneered as Yako continued to narrowly evade and block Neuro's blows. "Neuro's mind and body belongs to me now and nothing you can say or do will change that!"

"I know you're stronger than this, Neuro!" Yako panted, ignoring HAL's words. With her demon tools sucking away her energy and Neuro giving her no chance to rest, she was quickly loosing energy to fight, as well as will. She couldn't bring herself to switch to offensive, but, if she continued to just defend herself, it would eventually come to the point where she wouldn't have the energy to stand. "I know you can hear me! Please, just listen to me!"

Neuro remained unfazed, swiping at her again and this time knocking one of her blades out of her hands, his second blow locking with her remaining blade as she tried pushing him back.

"I'm sorry I was the reason you suffered all these years!" Yako continued, feeling her arms begin to quiver from the strain. "I'm sorry I forgot about you! But I remember all of it now and now I need you to remember! You lost that girl from all those years ago once, do you want to loose her forever!?" She felt the pressure of Neuro's claws against her remaining weapon let up just enough that she could knock him away from her. And as she did she saw a pained look pass through Neuro's once emotionless eyes.

Neuro stumbled backward, palm of one of his lands pressed against his head like he was nursing some sort of headache.

"Neuro, what are you doing?" HAL hissed angrily. "Attack her!" Much to his and Yako's surprise Neuro remained where he was, a suffering look on his face.

"I know you don't want to do this!" Yako cried. "You just need to snap out of it!"

"You'll do as I command, Neuro!" HAL bellowed. "Now, kill her!" Neuro's head snapped up, revealing the emotionless face he'd worn before. Yako gasped in fright as he charged forward, claws ready to pierce her skin. She had no time to ready herself to block the attack, she'd let her guard down in hopes he would come around. Now she could do nothing but cringe.

"Neuro! STOP!"

Right away, something didn't seem right. Neuro's claws surely would have pierced her flesh by then. But she didn't even feel any pain, just the warm feeling of blood splattering against her body. She didn't know what was wrong, but she dared not open her eyes.

"Ya…ko…" Her eyes unwillingly shot open at the sound of the strained, but familiar voice. Neuro's blow had been stopped, his razor-sharp claws inches from ripping into her skin. Instead, they had buried themselves in and all the way through someone else who had taken the blow for her.

"Higuchi!" She gasped, feeling as if the ground had disappeared from under her feet. It was the same, panicked feeling she felt the very night Kanae had met her demise by the very same claws that pierced through Higuchi's body. A frightened cry clawed its way up her throat and passed her lips as tears began to quickly well up in her eyes.

"What a fool," HAL cackled. "Trying to play the hero when, really, he's just delaying the inevitable." He looked at the scene in an almost amused way as Yako cried. "Well, what are you waiting for, Neuro, tear that boy apart and finish the job!"

"NO!" Yako screamed, her sadness morphing into rage as she swung her sword wildly at Neuro, who was forced to retract his claws and leap away from her and Higuchi, but not without her blade marring his cheek. Throwing her remaining blade to the ground, she caught Higuchi's limp body, his blood quickly soaking her arms. Falling to her knees, she held Higuchi close to her as she sobbed.

"Why…" She cried bitterly. "Why did you have to do that? …You idiot…"

"I'm… sorry," Higuchi weakly apologized as blood bubbled up from his lips and muffling his words. Yako couldn't think of anything to say. Another one of her friends was going to die and it was all her fault. All she could do was cry, her tears rolling down her cheeks and dripping onto Higuchi's body. A kind hand touching her cheek finally brought her out of her crying fit. Higuchi reached up with a quivering hand, gently touching his blood-covered fingers against her face, leaving crimson trails as his hand slowly caressed her skin.

"Yako…" Higuchi began, his words cut off by a fit of hacking and coughing as blood began to suffocate him.

"Higuchi, you shouldn't speak, you're-" Yako cried, looking down at him horrified.

"Shhh," He whispered, cringing before continuing. "From what you've…told me about Neuro… I know he'd want you to fight…"

"What?"

"You can't run away… And you can't give up and… Let yourself be killed…" He paused, spitting up more of his own blood. "He told you to run… But… I'm sure eve he knows… The only way you can save him… Is by fighting him." Yako remained silent, knowing very well Higuchi was right. Running from Neuro and allowing him to kill her wasn't going to help.

"Yako…" Higuchi coughed, his voice quickly growing weaker. "Before…I go… there's something…I need to…tell you." Yako nodded, sniffling. "Yako…I…" His hand that he had rested against her cheek limply fell to the ground as Higuchi's eyes grew vacant.

"Higuchi?" Yako gently shook him, but got no response as his body hung loosely in her arms, almost as if he were a doll. "Higuchi!" Her vision became clouded by tears again as she tightly held his body close to her. There wasn't a heartbeat or the soft sound of breathing; He was gone.

"How tragic," She heard HAL laugh over her sobs. He watched the whole scene with a sick grin, as if the entire thing had been staged for his amusement. "Your foolish friend didn't even get to tell you his last words. It's quite satirical, really."

"Shut up!" Yako shouted, lifting her head to look at him with anger filling her eyes just as much as tears had.

"Well, aren't we being ungrateful." HAL snapped. "I could have easily had Neuro kill you while you mourned over that stupid thing that died saving you. You should be thanking me that I allowed you to share your final words with your friend before I rip you open." Yako turned her attention away from him, looking back down to Higuchi, whose eyes were still blankly looking back at her.

"Thank you, Higuchi," She whispered, closing his eyes for him. "For everything." She leaned forward, planting a gentle kiss against his cold, bloody lips before laying his body on the ground. She stared down at him sadly for a few more moments before reaching over and grasping the sword she'd thrown to the ground in her hands, turning, once again, to face her foe.

"And I will fight," She added quietly. "For Neuro's sake and to make sure you didn't die in vain."

"You're ready to begin your pointless attempts to try and reach Neuro, I assume?" HAL asked with a smirk. Yako glared back at him, non-verbally declaring she was. With a light chuckle, he shot her a demeaning glance before snapping his fingers, the small action cueing Neuro to continue his assault. Clutching the blade in her hands, Yako charged as well, swinging her blade at Neuro while he swiped his claws at her. A loud clang rang through the air as sparks spewed fourth. The clash forced the both of them backward, but only for a moment as they charged one another again.

'My words can only reach him so much…' Yako thought as she wildly fought, neither of the two of them managing to score a blow against the other. 'But, back then was proof that he's in there somewhere…The Neuro that I…' Yako gasped for breath, exhaustion getting the best of her as she lost her footing, leaving herself wide open for Neuro to slice her arm, the force from the blow knocking her backwards. Grasping at her wound, she moaned in pain, and the sound of amused laugher from HAL didn't soften the sting. Now that she was standing still, she came to realize how much the fight had exhausted her. She knew, by now, that the demon tool she had sucked away her energy the more she used it, but even with one blade she could feel it had consumed a large amount on it's own, having been used so heavily. Simply getting back to her feet felt strenuous.

'If this goes on any longer I won't even be able to move,' she thought to herself. 'There has to be some way…' Clutching at her arm, she recalled something HAL had said the day they had met. Biting her lip, she quickly thought over her idea. It would require her using whatever last bits of strength she had, and if it failed, she was sure to perish. But, it was the only thing she could conjure up. And, as Neuro charged at her again, she certainly didn't have time to come up with any other sort of plan.

"Please work!" Despite her aching legs she ran forward, readying her blade. The actual attack had been a blur; she allowed her body to move on it's own. The next thing she knew, the two of them had passed each other and her legs gave out from under her. Her blade slipped from her hands and clattered out of reach, leaving her defenseless and praying her plan had worked. Forcing herself into a sitting position, she looked over her shoulder to Neuro, who remained where he was looking away from both her and HAL. At first there was silence and she felt herself being overcome by a fear-induced panic. But a sharp cracking sound broke the silence as the two circlets that had once encircled Neuro's arms shattered, the pieces clattering to the ground. The silence between them remained, however, and it left Yako doubting if her plan had worked.

"What are you waiting for, Neuro!?" HAL barked. "Finnish her off!" Neuro turned around, his vacant expression still on his face as he began to slowly approach Yako.

"No…" Yako muttered, eyes widening in fear as she tried and failed to move and to reach her weapon. Her plan had failed. Hanging her head in defeat she awaited Neuro's final blow as his shadow grew closer, consuming the ground around her. Tightly shutting her eyes, she expected the worst.

"Thank you for disobeying me."

Yako's gaze shot upward, looking up to see Neuro giving her a shadow of an approving smile.

"N-Neuro!" She cried happily as his gaze shifted from her to HAL, who was looking at the two of them, baffled.

"What's wrong, master, nothing to say?" Neuro chuckled, taking a few steps forward before turning back to Yako.

"You're much too weak to remain in a place like this." He told her. "I can't risk you remaining here." She whipped around to face him and beg him to let her stay, but as she turned around, Neuro was no longer there. Warm sunlight once again replaced the dark colors of the possessed space, the familiar sounds of the city flooding back around her. A small wave of strength came back to her- at least enough that she could stand. She quickly turned around, looking to where Higuchi had been, but he, too, had disappeared along with Neuro, HAL and the possessed space. Twisting back around she looked to the place Neuro had been seconds before, half expecting him to return the moment she turned around. The seconds she stared at the empty space lapsed into minutes that seemed like hours to her. Fear and worry quickly clouded her feeling of relief that the old Neuro was back. Sure, he was normal again, but did that mean he could defeat HAL on his own?

"Neuro…" She muttered, eyes traveling to the ground. She desperately wanted to see him- it didn't matter what he did to her afterward; she just wanted the reassurance he was all right. And all she wanted to do was to wait in that spot until he returned, but she then figured there was a better place to do so.

'I wonder, if I pray for his safe return…' She thought to herself, looking up to where she'd seen Neuro last. "…Will my prayer be answered?"

* * *

A soft creaking of her window being opened resonated through Yako's room, but she wasn't awake to hear it. Sound asleep on her bed, she had given into her exhaustion and drifted into a deep slumber. A hushed voice calling her name softly, however, was enough to pry her from her dreams- a voice she'd been so anxious to hear again.

"Neuro!" She gasped sleepily, sitting up quickly and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Her tired eyes quickly darted upwards, meeting his as he stood at her bedside. And, at first, she thought it all to be just another dream (His presence had certainly invaded her dreams before) but, as she weakly reached out and gripped the fabric of his shirt, she knew it wasn't just another illusion.

"Neuro… I…" Words flooded back to her from a memory long lost as tears began to collect in the corners of her eyes. "Please… Stay." Neuro looked down at her in surprise at first before his expression softened. Softly chuckling, he tilted her head back so she was looking back into his eyes as he leaned forward, positioning his face dangerously close to hers.

"Back then… I never truly gave you my answer, did I?" Yako felt a warm blush rush to her face as tears that had gathered finally poured down her reddened cheeks. "Do you still want to hear it that badly?" She nodded as he lightly laughed again, like Yako was some sort pet of his that had done something silly. "How sure are you that I'll say yes?" The range of emotions that passed through Yako's face only caused him to laugh more. He paused a few short moments, taking in Yako's anxious expression as he wiped a stray tear from one of her eyes.

"Yes," He told her softly, "I'll stay." Hearing Neuro say it only caused Yako to cry more as he leaned further forward, pressing his lips against hers. She felt him gently wrap his arms around her, as if any forceful movements would cause her to break, as he slowly lowered her onto the bed. Positioning himself above her the kiss continued, growing deeper with each passing second.

'Neuro…' Yako found herself thinking as the passionate kiss finally broke and she looked into his eyes. 'I love you…'

* * *

At first, Yako figured the loud noise that had woken her up was her alarm, but as she opened her eyes, it turned out not to be the case as she came to find Akane standing at her bed side, hands cupped over her mouth and a terrified look in her eyes.

"What the hell?" Yako mumbled. "How did you get-?" She attempted to sit up only to find something was keeping her down. A slight turn of her head revealed a gloved hand wrapped around her waist. Shit.

"Wait, Akane, it isn't what it…" She began, only coming to the conclusion it really was what Akane thought. She was stripped down to nothing but her underwear and Neuro was holding her from behind, only wearing god-knows-what.

"Hmmm? Oh, Akane," she heard Neuro chuckle- almost evilly- as he woke up. Yako gasped as she felt him pull her close to him as he sat up, only furthering the look of rage that was slowly growing on Akane's face. "I really must thank you. Who would have thought you'd be so kind as to give Yako her memories back." Yako felt a cold shiver run up her spine as Akane threw her one of the nastiest looks she'd ever given her.

"You…you…" She seethed. "I'll never forgive you for this!" In a rage she stormed out of the room, making sure to audibly groan angrily as she slammed Yako's apartment door behind her.

"Oh no…" Yako muttered, just as her alarm clock began to ring, it's volume much more quiet when compared to what had woken her up.

"Heh, she's never going to leave you alone now," Neuro smirked.

"That's your fault." She groaned, pulling away from his embrace and slowly making her way off the bed.

"Oh… And, Neuro…" She added, looking over her shoulder to him. "Thank you."


	15. Copycat

Yako slowly opened her eyes as daylight shown in through her window, casting a warm ray of light across the room. She yawned as she tried to roll out of bed, only to find her arms had been rendered useless and were bound against her sides by a possessive embrace. She heaved a sigh as she acknowledged the soft feeling of someone's breath caressing the skin on the back of her neck: Neuro's breath. A larger part of her wanted to escape, get out of bed and continue her morning routine as always, but a smaller part of her wished ever-so-badly to stay wrapped in his embrace the whole day long, or at least for a few moments longer. And seeing as Neuro's embrace was a bit on the inescapable side, that smaller part of her won out, at least for a moment. There wasn't any harm in letting him sleep a few minutes more.

The much-desired feeling of peace had swallowed her up again, it seemed. After the defeat of HAL, Yako would always half expect some other fearsome demon to crawl up from out of hell to break the silence. But day after day passed and nothing of the sort had occurred. Aside from work, which always tested her, and facing Akane, who was bent on separating her and Neuro more than ever, everything had slipped into a calm, peaceful routine, and Yako had begun to chose to live in the moment instead of waste all of it away watching her back- at least for now.

Pressing herself against Neuro's body she began to loose herself in his warmth, but not before he finally spoke up.

"You wouldn't happen to have realize the time, would you…" He paused as he relinquished the use of Yako's arms back to her, slowly sliding his fingertips across her skin as he did, before adding, "worm?"

"We're fine, my alarm hasn't gone off yet, I have plenty of time," Yako mumbled into her pillow.

"Oh, do you?" He asked her, a sound of amusement in his voice that made Yako question just how sure she was. "Because I don't think I remember seeing you set your alarm last night."

Yako sharply gasped, throwing herself into a sitting position so quickly she could have given herself whiplash. She desperately grasped at her clock, begging this to be yet another one of Neuro's tricks, but, much to her dismay what she found was much worse than a simple prank. At this rate, she wouldn't be a few simple minutes late to the studio- Godai was already making arrangements for her funeral by now. A dark chuckle from Neuro's direction made the situation all the more worse.

"You knew how late it was, didn't you!?" She cried, leaping ungracefully from her bed as she ran around her room in a panic, unsure of what to do first.

"You seemed so peaceful, I guess I couldn't bear to wake you," Neuro explained, a smirk on his face as he shrugged nonchalantly. Yako narrowed her eyes at him angrily. It didn't matter to him whether she was a minute -or a whole several hours in this case- late for work, but by now she was sure he knew it mattered to her. He liked to make her miserable just as much as he like to make her happy, but this was a whole new low for the former. The terror she couldn't even imagine that was furiously waiting for her at work by this point was equal to that of an actual demon. She even found herself considering buying Godai some sort of expensive bribe to not kill her on the spot when she walked in- but wouldn't that only make her even more late?

Groaning in frustration and pulling at her hair, she haphazardly got ready, picking out small details in her usual daily routine that would buy her more time if she skipped over them. She could do her makeup at work, as long as she didn't stand too close to anyone brushing her teeth could easily take back seat, showering was definitely out, breakfast too…

All the while, Neuro watched her with a pleased gleam in his eyes and slowly got himself dressed. He was taking his sweet time, and Yako knew it. She was already running in place at her front door, her hair a mess and her choice in clothes seeming like she'd picked them out in the dark, and he was still taking his sweet time. She could no longer suppress a frustrated scream through her clenched teeth as she watched him in disbelief.

"Augh, I'm leaving without you!" She shouted, throwing open the door and dashing down the hallway, whether he was close behind or not.

By the time she stumbled outside her apartment building she was out of breath, having decided on running as fast as she could down the stairs instead of wasting even more time waiting for an elevator.

"Always in such a hurry," Neuro appeared at her side, seemingly out of nowhere, as she continued to run down the street. He easily matched her stride despite the fact she was using every inch of energy to run as fast as she humanly could.

"Because I'm late!" She snapped between breaths. "And it's your fault!"

"Well, you should have thought about setting you alarm before you-"

"Shut up, don't talk about that in public!" Yako shrieked, knowing exactly where Neuro had been headed as her cheeks reddened. Neuro chuckled, despite her anger, following after her in silence the rest of the way.

"I need you to stay out here," Yako told Neuro once they were outside the studio doors. Yako could only imagine what sort of hell was waiting for her behind them. Neuro cocked an eyebrow, as if to ask her why. "The last thing I need is for Godai to have more things to yell at me about, and believe me, you'll probably be one of those things!" She didn't take a second to wait for a response as she whirled around and practically barreled through the doors.

The fact she wasn't immediately hit with a wave of angry banter only made the scene before her even worse. She'd expected everyone to be waiting for her impatiently, but what she hadn't expected was to see the staff taking the set _down_. If this wasn't a sign she was in for the scolding of her life, she didn't know what was. Her eyes caught Godai –who was talking to a staff member near the back of the studio- as a cold shiver ran up her spine. One long, loud gulp later she hurried over to him whilst bracing herself for the worst.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry-" She began as she ran up to him, nearly tripping over several cords that were lying in her way. Godai turned around, surprisingly not as angry looking as she figured he would be.

"Oh, Yako," He didn't even sound the least bit irate. "You forget something?"

"Forget something?" Yako asked confused as she stopped dead in her tracks.

"Whatever it is, you should clear it out of the dressing room before the next model gets here," Godai told her, turning his attention back to the staff member he'd been talking to. "Good work, by the way."

"Good… work?" Her entire body felt heavy, weighed down by exhaustion. And now, on top of the feeling that one more step would bring her pain, she was unbelievably confused. "But…I just got here."

"Yako, whatever kind of joke this is, I really don't have time for it," Godai sighed, throwing her an annoyed look over his shoulder. "And what's with that get-up? You look like a clown."

* * *

Neuro stood outside the studio doors, waiting impatiently for Yako to come back. Having to wait even a few seconds was annoying, and it was getting to the point where he was considering just letting himself in whether she wanted him to or not. But, just as he reached for the door, he felt someone tap him on his shoulder. Expecting it to be Akane, he looked over his shoulder crossly. Much to his surprise, it was Yako, a smile on her face, but it seemed weak and defeated.

"Sorry about that," she sighed, her smile beginning to waver. "Godai really handed me my ass, but the set was already being taken down, so he told me to just go home." She leaned forward, her hands on her knees. "God, today can't get any worse!"

Neuro stared at her as she began to mutter to herself in defeat. It may have been that her boss tore her down so thoroughly, but something seemed off.

"Well unless you want it to, we should probably leave then," He told her, trying to analyze just what seemed to strange. "If we stay her any longer than we should Akane will-"

"Ugh, don't remind me," Yako muttered, straightening up. "The last thing I need is someone else screaming in my ear." She quickly led the way out of the building and into the crowded streets. Neuro followed behind her, watching her closely. It was Yako, as far as looks went, but for some reason he couldn't fight the feeling it wasn't Yako at all.

* * *

"I swear, I think I'm being pranked or something," Yako mumbled to herself as she walked out the studio. "Neuro, you wouldn't believe… What…?" She looked around only to find Neuro was nowhere in sight.

"Neuro?" She called, walking further out into the hall. "God, don't tell me Akane got to him before I did." She rested her face in her palm, releasing a heavy sigh that quickly evolved into a yelp as someone grasped her shoulder. She yanked herself out of the grasp and whipped around to find Neuro, a toothy grin on his face.

"Jesus, Neuro, don't scare me like that!" She gasped, hand over her heart as if to keep it from beating it's way out of her chest. Neuro chuckled, clearly amused with how frightened she was.

"Well, maybe you should be more aware of your surroundings, shouldn't you, worm?" He asked with a sneer. Yako glared up at him, an annoyed frown pulling at the edges of her lips.

"You certainly weren't in there for very long. After all that fuss you made, I was sure you'd be coming crawling out of there much later than this."

"That's the weird thing," Yako told him as she started for the exit. "According to Godai, I was on time and did my job, which I obviously didn't. I think I'm on candid camera or something." She looked around as they walked outside for tell-tale signs her suspicions were correct.

"Well whatever trick they're pulling on me, all that freaking out this morning was for nothing," she sighed, looking down at her poor choice in clothes. Godai was right, she really did look like a clown.

"Yako… I've been thinking…" Neuro finally spoke up after the two of them had walked together in silence for a short while. His voice sounded sinister, and it sent a shiver up Yako's spine.

"Yes?" She asked, though something told her she wouldn't like the answer as her eyes met his. They were cold and unfeeling, looking back at her as if she wasn't even there.

"I've grown tired of this game, haven't you?"

"This game?" Yako asked, her voice wavering. Neuro's voice was dark and cold, where as her's was dripping with panic.

"Don't you think it's time we ended it? I'm sure it's gotten as boring for you as it is for me."

"What are you talking about?" Yako asked as she whipped all the way around to face him. He smirked lightly, as if her question was entertaining to him.

"You should know very well what I'm talking about worm," Neuro sneered as the air around them grew silent. The crowds that had once been engulfing them disappeared and the sunlight became washed over by a deep purple hue. Neuro's final words echoed through the possessed space he had created, each word like a razor sharp dagger as it echoed through the silence. "The Ultimate Mystery- it's about time you handed it over."

* * *

"Yako," Neuro finally spoke up. She turned to face him, looking surprised.

"Huh?" She asked, looking innocent.

"This isn't the way to your apartment- where exactly are you leading me?" He asked, stopping in his tracks.

"Well, it's a nice enough day, I just figured we could take a walk," she said with a smile. It seemed painfully forced, and her words seemed sweet on the surface, but something below them didn't seem right. Neuro remained where he stood as she turned her plastic smile away from him and began walking forward again. Then, and only then, did the realization hit him.

"Who are you?" He demanded icily. Yako jumped slightly in surprise, whirling back around.

"What are you talking about, Neuro, it's me." But now the veil had been lifted, and she knew it as well as him. Her fake plastic smile began to quickly evolve into a more sinister looking one, and her eyes became much more cruel than kind.

"The hairclip I gave Yako has a tracking device in it to let me know where she is when I'm not at her side," Neuro explained, frowning sharply. "Yours is just a cheep trinket, since, if my senses are correct, the real Yako is still near the modeling agency." The Yako in front of him lightly chuckled, fingertips pressed to her lips as the small laughter became more and more voluminous.

"For someone who claims higher intelligence, you aren't all that bright, seeing as I was able to lead you so far away from your precious little treasure," she grinned widely as the painfully quiet veil of a possessed space fell over them. "I guess there's really no hiding my identity now."

"You still haven't answered my question," Neuro growled. "Who are you?!"

"I'm exactly who I appear to be," she explained, her voice growing softer, now mimicking Yako's again. But as she spoke a massive scythe materialized in her now outstretched hand, the curved blade poised just inches from Neuro's throat. "I'm Yako."


	16. Mirror

"N-Neuro!" Yako gasped, taking a frightened step back. He looked back at her with a sinister, hungry gaze that sent a shiver up her spine. "Neuro, is this some kind of joke? Because if it is, it isn't funny anymore!"

"Why would I joke about something like this?" Neuro hissed, his grin growing wider as he began to slink towards her. "I've had plenty of time to think about it, and now I've come to the decision that I really don't need you. I just need what's inside of you."

"No!" Yako shot back, jumping and squeaking in fear as she felt her back press up against the wall of a nearby building. "You…You said-"

"You're more of a fool than I thought you were if you think you can trust a demon to keep their word," Neuro chuckled, licking his lips. "And you have no say in the matter, anyway. All I have to do is rip you open and that will be that. It's so simple, I almost feel like a fool myself for not having done it sooner."

Yako felt her eyes brim with tears of fear and sadness as her body began to quiver as he drew close enough she could hear his breathing. Was everything he had told her- everything they had shared- all just a lie to lower her defenses? Had it all just been an act in the end? Terror and misery clouded her mind as salty drops began to cloud her vision. She couldn't even summon up the will to brandish her demon tool. This wasn't like before, where Neuro's actions were being controlled by someone else. This time, he seemed very much in control of what he wanted to do, and what he wanted to do was break her heart before ripping her entire body in two.

"Please… Neuro…"

"Those pathetic tears will get you nowhere, worm," Neuro growled, roughly grasping her head and pressing it against the wall, forcing her to expose the soft flesh of her neck. "Though I must admit, the time I've spent with you will be something I will remember for a very long time, but it isn't going to stop me from getting what I want." Yako flinched, uttering a weak cry as she felt his warm breath tickle her skin as his teeth and tongue brushed against her neck. It would only be a split second before those teeth dug deep into her skin and that tongue would be lapping up her blood.

"That's as far as you go." An angry voice snapped. Yako gasped, opening her tear filled eyes as Neuro drew away from her neck, growling. Yako couldn't help but wonder if this was all just a strange dream, because standing behind Neuro, claws posed to burrow into his own neck was… Neuro?

"So, it seems you figured it out- I'm impressed. I was sure Yako would have distracted you long enough to extract the Ultimate Mystery from this pitiful human." Yako's mind began to quickly reel. Yako? She was Yako! And why were there two Neuros?

"Let's just say there was a vital flaw in your plans, though I have to commend the two of you: it was convincing enough that she was able to distract me for this long." Neuro paused and sneered. "But those plans end here. Now that I know about you two, it will be more than easy to sniff you out." Neuro looked angrily back at him, baring his teeth.

"Just because you're here now doesn't mean you'll be let off easy. I'm just as strong as you, if not more so. I know everything there is to know about you and your sloppy fighting style, and I'll be able to counter everything you try. You being here will only be a minor hiccup in obtaining the treasure within this little rat."

"As much as I would love to prove you wrong and tear you limb from limb for even daring to even try this stupid charade, I don't think either of us will have a chance to fight at the moment."

"And why is that?" The other Neuro raised an eyebrow, looking back at him angry and confused as Neuro pulled his claws away from his neck.

"Because if you busy yourself with fighting me, no one will be able to save your poor, dying Yako." Neuro smirked, an evil gleam in his green eyes. "She's quite the skilled fighter- I'll give her that- but in the end, it wasn't too hard to beat her within an inch of her life. Her life that I made sure she'd slowly begin to loose grasp of if she's left alone to bleed." The other Neuro's eyes widened, his lips curving into a sharp frown.

"This isn't over," He snapped, turning his back to the both of them, but throwing them one last cold look over his shoulder. "Just because you managed to slightly hinder our plan doesn't mean you've won. Next time you see us, defeating us will be harder than trying to defeat your own reflection." With those words, he disappeared, taking the possessed space with him as the crowds reappeared around Neuro and Yako, drowning the silence.

"Yako, are you-?" Neuro began, his words quickly getting cut off as Yako lunged at him and wrapped her arms as tight as she could around him. Her body shook violently as she sobbed. She didn't know what to feel more of: confusion or total relief that all the other Neuro had said hadn't been reality. And the feeling of Neuro embracing her back was nearly enough to make her forget about the baffling scene she had just witnessed, but, as she sobbed, the strange scenario still remained.

"What…what's going on?" She asked tearfully.

"It seems a new enemy has finally decided to show themselves," Neuro explained. "And they believe our greatest enemies will be ourselves."

* * *

"So, you failed me?" The other Neuro and Yako kneeled before the older woman speaking to them, her face turned away from the both of them, her form silhouetted before stained glass. The two of them looked down at the floor in shame.

"This time was just a fluke, my lady. Next time won't end up the same way." The other Yako muttered, every word sounding unsure.

"For your sake I certainly hope not," The woman turned to them, a strangely calm smile of her face. Nothing seemed off about her at all, and at first glance she seemed like a normal human and a kind one at that with the way she was smiling at the both of them. But they both knew better. This kind smile was only their master's mask. "You know what will happen if you fail me again, don't you?" The two of them looked to each other nervously before the other Neuro spoke up.

"You'll… get rid of us." He said, looking up to the woman briefly before quickly casting his eyes back down.

"You make it sound so simple, Neuro," she chuckled, her voice slowly beginning to change. "I'm not just going to get rid of you, I'm going to slowly and painfully rid this world of your existence, so much you'll wish you never even existed in the first place." Her once kind-sounding voice had dropped to a furious growl that echoed all around them. They dared not look up again; they knew their master had revealed her true face in her rage. Her once human face had jutted out, forming a dog-like snout. Her lips parted angrily, revealing horrifying fangs and her eyes now bore a new-found killing intent as she looked down at them. She now looked more like a furious, wild animal than a harmless human. "If you fail me again, I'll fill these halls with your screams and drench these halls in your blood! Death will feel like a luxury when I'm done with you!" She punctuated her words with a sharp growl that caused both of them to flinch.

"T-That won't be necessary, Lady Histerrier," The other Yako stammered, trying to speak over her masters irate growls. "The next time we face those two, we won't show them any mercy. Next time, we'll make sure to extract the Ultimate Mystery, as promised."

"I'll give you one more chance then," Lady Histerrier's voice changed once again to the voice that imitated a kind human's, but even below that, her words were dripping with venom. Kneeling down, she tightly grasped the other Yako's chin with a clawed hand and forced her to meet her gaze. Her human-like mask had reformed on her face but she still looked back at her with the same, animal-like eyes. "Fail me again and you'll wish you'd never been brought into this world."

* * *

"Why did you come save me?" The other Yako's voice was stern now that they weren't in the presence of their master. She glared furiously at the other Neuro, who was looking away from her and at the vast view of the city that could be seen from atop the building they were perched on. He remained silent, the sound of the wind whistling by filling the silence before the other Yako groaned in frustration.

"Answer me!"

"Would you rather have died, then?" He finally asked, coldly, throwing a quick glance over his shoulder.

"It's because you disobeyed orders and left Neuro and Yako alive that Lady Histerrier is upset!" She shouted. "Now they'll be waiting for us to attack and they'll have a higher chance of countering it! Don't you understand, if we fail, we're going to suffer-"

"And if you had died, you wouldn't have gotten your wish!" The other Neuro cut her off, his focus still on the city lights below. "Even if I would have carried out Lady Histerrier's orders you wouldn't have been able to reap the benefits."

"I don't-"

"Becoming a true existence in this world is what you wanted more than anything, right?" He asked her. "When we rid this world of Neuro and Yako we'll be able to take their places; We'll be free. If I hadn't come and saved you and killed the two of them you would have never gotten your wish. You'd die and your illusion of an existence would have been cast aside by Lady Histerrier, just like she's done with thousands of other dolls before us." He finally turned around, facing her and placing a hand on her shoulder. "I want you to be happy, Yako."

"Ah…" The other Yako felt her face grow warm as she felt the weight of his hand rest against her shoulder. Her eyes traveled downward as she tightly balled her hands into fists. She wanted nothing more than to deny what he had said and shrug away, but he knew better than anyone else that it was the truth. She hated being a doll that only existed because someone else willed her to. For ages, all she'd wanted was to be free. Reaching up, she placed her own hand on his, a ghost of a smile creeping across her lips.

"I'm still mad at you," She told him, although the harshness in her voice had subsided. "But… Thank you." She entwined her fingers with his own.

"Neuro…"

"What?"

"Could you call me Yako again…please?" She'd been nameless and faceless for so long- the thought of being offered a chance to have a name and an identity excited her. She wanted to hear him call the name she'd soon be able to hear again and again, thousands and thousands of times. She heard him chuckle lightly and, at first, she was afraid he would refuse or make her beg for it. But, instead, he pulled her closer and leaned forward so the words he spoke brushed against her ear.

"Yako." She smiled again, leaning against him.

_Yes, that's my name, isn't it? I'm no longer a placeholder- no longer nothingness. I am Yako._

* * *

"This is terrifying." Neuro looked to Yako, who was huddled up on her bed. "I was so easily tricked the first time- how am I supposed know who's the fake and who's not!?" she looked up as she felt the mattress beneath her shift as he sat next to her.

"I doubt they'll try the same tactic again now that, at least, I know what to look for." He told her. "But if they do try the same thing, then…" He reached out, placing his hand on top of hers. "You'll know because I'll never leave your side."

"Thanks," she felt a small smile grow on her lips despite her fears. Something about hearing Neuro say those words made her feel truly safe. "But…who are those people? Are the demons? Why do they look like us?"

"They aren't demons- they aren't even technically their own existence." Neuro explained. "They're dolls created from scraps of souls trapped in hell that are puppets to their master. Usually, in a few cases, when a soul is fated to be dragged to hell, a doll is set up in their place to continue on for them, usually as a trap set up by it's master to drag even more innocent people into the underworld."

"So if we die, they'll take our place?"

"And possibly doom everyone around you. Whoever is behind those dolls wants to have a whole new lot of innocent souls be tainted and dragged into hell when they take the throne. Doing so will create chaos in your world and will spread out like an explosion if they continue to replace those they destroy with more dolls."

"That's awful, who would want to do such a thing?" Yako gasped.

"You forget, we're fighting against demons," he told her. " They have no morals passed what they believe is right for themselves. Tainting souls and forcing them into hell will grant them more power. It isn't a method that should be used often, which is why the use of dolls is so restricted, but once whoever created those dolls of us obtains the Ultimate Mystery, they'll have the power to abolish those restrictions and drive this world into madness if they so wish."

"We have to stop them, then!" Yako exclaimed. "I refuse to have anyone else get killed because of me! Even in death, I'll never forgive myself if something that bad ends up happening!"

"You shouldn't get too worked up about it. As long as you fight along side me, I promise I'll never let anything like that happen to you or to this world."

"Neuro-"

"How sentimental." A voice cackled as two figures drenched in shadow emerged from the darkness. Immediately after appearing, a large object came flying at them that was narrowly blocked by Neuro, his claws now out. They clanked loudly against a gigantic, curved blade stretching out from where the two figures were. "Hearing a demon speak those words makes me want to puke! Too bad you won't be able to follow up on such a heartfelt promise!" Yako knew that voice, it was familiar as her own- in fact it was! The two figures stepped into the pale stretch of moonlight that illuminated Yako's room, revealing themselves to be their copies. The other Yako held a scythe aloft with no trouble at all with its blade inches away from slicing Neuro's head clean off his shoulders had be not blocked it.

"Why so surprised? Did you think we'd waste time and wait around?" The other Neuro laughed. "We don't have the luxury, and we'd hate to delay wasting the two of you for longer than should be truly necessary."

"Starting with this troublesome pest." The other Yako smirked. "I'm going to pay you back for what you did to me!" With an angry grunt she was able to push Neuro back, sending him flying. The other Neuro lunged at him while he was still air born, digging his own claws into the flesh of Neuro's chest moments before he ran into the wall.

"Neuro!" Yako cried as he grunted in pain. Summoning her demon tool she lunged forward, but her attack was stopped as the other Yako's blade swung at her, forcing her to leap backward, away from Neuro.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that." She smirked. "Two on one isn't fair, after all. You're going to have to go through me first." Yako charged again furiously, her blades meeting the other Yako's scythe.

"Now…I wonder," The other Yako chuckled. "You've been able to take on a few demons all by yourself by now. But, are you strong enough to defeat your own reflection?"


	17. Two-faced

Yako cried out as she felt herself be flung back against the wall. The other Yako wasn't giving her any chance to pass her or even land a single attack, like she knew exactly what she would do before even she knew. All the while, the two Neuros fought behind her viciously, and simply watching the display was distracting her even more. They were just as evenly matched as her and the other Yako, who looked down at her with a sick smirk on her face.

"What's the matter?" She asked with mock concern. "Getting tired? Well, that's too bad, because I've only just begun!" She lunged at her, her scythe ready to slice her in two. Gasping and narrowly finding her footing, Yako leapt away before the blade met her flesh. The gigantic blade pieced her wall, sending bits and pieces of shrapnel from her wall flying through the air.

"It's almost an insult I'm a copy of someone as weak as you," The other Yako muttered angrily, ripping the scythe from the wall with ease. "Now certainly isn't the time to hold back, you know. At the very least, I want to know I was able to steal your existence with a little effort. This is almost insulting!" She swung her scythe at Yako again, who stopped the blow with her own two blades. The surge from the encounter ran up her arms, sending a wave of pain through her body that made her cringe. She felt herself being slowly pushed back, her heels meeting another wall behind her.

"But I have to admit, I like you a little. It's because if you that I'll finally be able to exist, so I'll do you one, last solid before I tear you apart." The other Yako sneered, enjoying watching Yako struggle. "I'll beat you within an inch of your life, but I'll keep you alive long enough that you can watch you're Neuro get annihilated as well. What better way to depart from this world than to watch the person you love the most die!"

"What? How is that doing me any favors?" Yako snapped, the effort she was putting into keeping the other Yako's scythe away showing in her voice.

"Because, that way you'll know there will be a familiar face on the other side while you burn forever in hell!" The other Yako cackled. "And this way I get to pay Neuro back for what he did to me. Everyone wins!"

As the other Yako laughed manically a surge of energy suddenly shot through Yako's body, the other Yako's sickening grin throwing her into a rage. With all of her might she pushed forward, catching the other Yako off guard. She stumbled backward, just barely stopping Yako's weapons from digging into her skin with her scythe. A shower of sparks lit up the darkened room, the anger on Yako's face clearly visible for a short moment in their light.

"I refuse to let you do this!" She shouted, knocking back the other Yako again. "You won't lay a hand on Neuro! You aren't going to get the Ultimate Mystery! And you certainly aren't going to drag everyone around me into hell with you!"

"What are you talking about?!" The other Yako barked, staggering backward.

"You're a doll that will drag everyone around you into hell once you take my place!" Yako shouted back, lashing out again. "Your master wants to drive the world into chaos, starting with you two!"

"That's bullshit! I'm here for no such reason!" The other Yako snarled. "What idiot told you that?"

"Neuro!" Yako shouted back, their weapons clashing again. The two of them were face to face, both trying to push the other backwards to try and gain the upper hand. "And I trust his word over anything you have to say!"

"Your Neuro… knows NOTHING!" The other Yako snapped furiously, her own anger pushing her to her limit as well as she shoved Yako backward. Her body flew backwards, slamming into the wall. She gasped, the very air she was breathing knocked from her lungs as her back met the wall. Before she could pick herself up, the blade of the other Yako's scythe was just barely pressed to her throat, a single movement on either of their parts threatening to tear open the soft skin.

"You have no idea how it feels to have no identity- no name! To just waste away as an empty existence day after day is a torture you'll never be able to even imagine!" The other Yako shrieked. "Now I have a chance to escape that! Now I have a chance to be someone, to have a name and to have a place in this world! Nothing you do –nothing any of you do- is going to stop me from finally grasping what it feels like to finally be someone!" Yako looked up at her, wide eyed, unable to speak.

"Now die, and let me know what it feels like!" The other Yako screamed, gripping the hilt of her scythe tightly. "LET ME KNOW WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE YAKO!"

"Yako!" A voice cut through the air, stopping the other Yako before she could slice through Yako's neck. She spun around, coming face to face with Neuro, though it was unclear as to which Neuro it was. The other Yako narrowed her eyes, seeming unsure herself about which of the two he could be. Blood covered his exposed claws as he looked at the two of them with a sick-looking, toothy grin. The two Yako's watched him closely, unsure about what would happen next.

"Why don't we kill her together?" Neuro asked with a grin. "The two of us can gain our new lives together." Yako's eyes grew wide in shock and fear, while the other Yako made a grin that mimicked Neuro's. It almost seemed unbelievable to Yako- she never pictured it would end like this: being wasted by her own reflection.

"It's good to see that fool of a demon didn't kill you," the other Yako chuckled, turning to her prey. "I never would have forgiven you."

"Well, I'm here now." Neuro chuckled, walking beside her. "Now, we can finish this."

"No…" Yako gasped, trying to look beyond the two of them to see what have become of the real Neuro. "N…Neuro…"

"Would you like the first strike, then?" The other Yako asked, pulling her scythe away from Yako's neck to give the other Neuro access. "I've had plenty of time to play with her, you deserve at least one shot."

"With pleasure." Yako shut her eyes, catching a single glimpse of the other Neuro's cruel smile before squeezing her eyes shut. Much to her surprise, a single blow didn't reach her, only the feeling of something warm splattering against her body. And then she heard a scream.

She opened her eyes wide to see the other Neuro gleefully ripping a hole in the other Yako's side with his claws. The other Yako looked at him, eyes wide with pain and shock as she fell to the ground with a thud. She writhed painfully, her words and cries drowned out by blood.

"How pathetic." Neuro chuckled, looking at the other Yako who was now moaning in agony at his feet. "You can't even tell the difference between me and my pathetic clone. Maybe having us be identical was a bad idea in hindsight."

"Neuro!" Yako exclaimed, her voice filled with relief.

"Y…You…" The other Yako hacked up more blood. Even in her pain she was struggling to push herself back up, the strain hurting her even more as more blood poured from her wound and from her lips. "W…Where…where is…"

"Don't worry, I made sure you're Neuro's death will be as slow and painful as yours." Neuro smirked. "I've left him to bleed where you won't be able to see him."

"You…You D-" The other Yako sputtered, forcing herself into a sitting position, her eyes now filled with nothing but hatred.

"Demon?" Neuro finished for her, looking almost amused at her final struggle as he plucked her scythe from the floor. "Well, you two mindless dolls brought it upon yourselves; anyone who tries to hurt Yako will be punished. She belongs to no one but me."

"N… No… I…" The other Yako coughed again, blood seeping through her hand that covered her mouth. "I'm… Yako… I'm Yako!"

"My, I've never seen a doll as self aware as you and your companion. Whoever created you must be quite skilled." Neuro held her scythe aloft, it's blade inches away from slicing into her. "But maybe it was for the better- either way, you were doing what they wanted, you're just the first to actually have some sort of ill-informed motivation to do your master's bidding." He drew the weapon back, but only to get ready to lob the other Yako in two. "But one thing's for certain: you never would have been Yako, and you certainly aren't Yako now."

Yako turned her head, refusing to watch the disgusting display of Neuro killing off the girl who looked uncomfortably too much like herself. But, in that lapse of a few seconds, something blocked the blow, intercepting the killing strike and knocking the other Yako out of the way.

"NEURO!"

Yako looked up just in time to see the horrifying scene that had unfolded. The other Neuro, still very much alive, much to everyone's surprise, had used the last bits of strength he had to give his own life to save the other Yako's. His body landed onto the ground with a disgusting splatter, blood quickly enveloping the ground around him. Yako watched, wide eyed and mouth agape, as the other Yako crawled clumsily on all fours to his body that was nearly cut in two.

"Neuro! Neuro!" She cried, hands grasping at his bloody shirt as she buried her face against his bleeding chest.

"Now… y-you… still… have a… c-chance…" He wearily said between blood-filled coughs.

"No! N-Neuro! You… you can't die! You can't-" The other Yako cut herself off, shaking the other Neuro's body that had become limp. "Neuro? …Neuro!?" Tears began to build up in her eyes, gliding down her blood-streaked face. "No… No! You were supposed to be there with me! We were supposed to obtain true existence together!"

"You never would have gotten it in the first place." Neuro told her coldly. She looked up to him with angry, tear filled eyes and teeth clenched that were dyed red from her own blood.

"SHUT UP!" She snarled.

"Your master never would have given you actual will once you'd completed her task." Neuro continued in spite of her command. "Once we were dead and gone, you'd just be her thoughtless tools again, nothing more."

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

"And you'd blindly serve her, without even thinking for a moment that you were your own person, until you wore out your usefulness. And then, your master would dispose of you, making it so it was as if you never even-"

"SHUT! UP!" The other Yako was hysterical now, blood-covered hands pressed tightly against her ears as she shook her head back and fourth in denial of what Neuro had said. "YOU'RE WRONG! YOU'RE LYING!"

"Did you think your master would be so kind as to do something this special for one of their dolls?" Neuro asked her. "I'm sure you've seen them use others before, just like you. What made you think you'd be any different from them?" The other Yako looked back at him, wide-eyed, hands returning to clutching her dead companion.

"We… The Ultimate Mystery…"

"Your task may be a bit more important, but your ends would be just the same. Once your master gained control of hell, you two would simply be the pieces that would deliver their checkmate." Neuro explained, seeming almost annoyed with the other Yako now. "You're special value to their plans to enslave this world will mean nothing in the end, though. They just allowed for you to think for yourselves in hopes you'd get the job done faster, not because they were actually going to give up their master stroke against humanity so you could be happy."

"…You're wrong." The other Yako hissed. "Lady Histerrier would never lie to us! Never! You'll see! I'll come back to prove you wrong and to kill the both of you! If I'm so important to her anyway, she'll make me even stronger! Strong enough to kill the both of you and get revenge for what you did to Neuro! You'll see! I will be the last thing you will see!" Her final words echoed as the possessed space she and Neuro had dropped faded away, Yako's apartment returning to its normal state it had been in before the battle.

"Neuro… do you think she'll be back?" Yako finally spoke up. Neuro sighed, shaking his head.

"A master would never waste their time with a broken doll. Whatever this Lady Histerrier plans to do, chances are we'll never see her again."

* * *

"Lady Histerrier!" The other Yako moaned, dragging herself across the floor of her master's lair weakly. "Lady His-" She coughed, blood flowing from her lips and splattering to the ground. Her wounds wouldn't matter, though, Lady Histerrier would heal her and make her even stronger, she knew it!

"Would you be so kind as to explain why you've come crawling back empty handed, Yako?" Her master's unnaturally kind voice filled the room as she stepped out of the shadows. Her human mask was already beginning to falter, her eyes looking down at the other Yako like a predator would eye unsatisfying prey.

"My lady, please! I need you to confirm something for me!" The other Yako gasped, exhaustion and blood loss slowly taking its' toll on her.

"Confirm something?" Lady Histerrier growled through clenched teeth. "You've come back, a bleeding, pitiful failure, so you could confirm something?" She knelt down, tightly grasping the other Yako's chin in her hand with a grip that threatened to shatter her jaw. "And what, might I ask, would that be?"

"M… My lady…" The other Yako stammered. "You… you were going to allow Neuro and me to live freely, right? You'd set us free if we succeeded in bringing you the Ultimate Mystery, right?" Her voice began to quiver unsurely as her master's face began to show it's true, dog-like features.

"What happens to you in the end shouldn't matter! You're just dolls! You are to do as I say, not to come back bloody and battered to ask me idiotic questions!" She snapped, gnashing her now pointed fangs. "And I suppose this means you've failed again, am I right? You dare to show your face here without the Ultimate Mystery in your filthy little hands?"

"I…I'm sorry! If you give me one more chance-!"

"One more chance!? ONE MORE CHANCE!?" Lady Histerrier roared, throwing the other Yako roughly to the side. "I'm through with giving you chances- it ends here! Why try using something again if it's broken!? I could have easily done all of this myself without you and your dead friend mucking up my plans!" She strode over to Yako, pressing her foot against her head and pinning her to the floor. "I should have simply torn you both apart when you failed me the first time! But now, you're lucky, and the torture you and him were going to go through is now all yours!" She paused, her face reverting back to a kind human's, her eyes still holding an eerie, homicidal look within.

"But I guess I should, at the very least, answer your question before I make you wish you'd never came to be." She smiled sickeningly sweet. "I never planned on granting you and Neuro your own existence. I've been lying to you all this time- I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

* * *

"Lady Histerrier?" Akane repeated the name, seeming lost in thought as she tried to recall the face that went with the name. Neuro couldn't quite recall the demon who the name belonged to, but now that they knew who they were facing, the least they could do was gather up whatever information they could about her. It was only a matter of time until she decided to handle trying to get a hold of the Ultimate Mystery herself.

Of course, Akane helping them at all was going to come with a price- already she had several days of Neuro all to herself under her belt to be used whenever she wanted.

"Anything you can think up will help." Yako added.

"Shut up, idiot, I'm thinking." Akane snapped, glaring at Yako, as usual. "You could have called me back to the apartment, you know. Being outside with all these people around makes it hard to think clearly."

"We knew you wouldn't try anything too weird if we had you meet us in a public place." Neuro sneered. "Now, do you know who she is, or not? If you can't think of a single thing, then there's no reason to pay you back with time alone with me."

"Okay, okay, okay!" Akane exclaimed. "I remember now! She's a pretty well-respected demon, known for her excessive use of dolls."

"So we've noticed." Yako sighed. Simply speaking up got her a cold glare from Akane.

"As I was saying, her use of them is always on the cusp of the limit. She uses them for everything, to the point where she's gotten so good at manipulating them, they can fight as well as any demon while under her control."

"How many would you say she has at her disposal at one time?" Neuro asked.

"I'd say hundreds- you'd have to be a madman not to go up against her without some sort of plan, or maybe some sort of army." Akane explained. "When I say she's excessive, I really do mean excessive." Neuro seemed to be lost in thought for a few moments, as if creating his master plan right then and there.

"And if we come up with a sort of plan to face her, where would we find her?"

"Um… That's one thing I'm not really sure of." Akane muttered, seeming ashamed she was one fact short.

"Well, we certainly aren't going to wait around for her to find us. Unless we make the first move, we're doomed to fail."

"I can tell you where Lady Histerrer is hiding." Silence fell over the three of them as a possessed space devoured all noise and light around them. They all spun around to see the source of the voice as a figure emerged from the darkness. It was the other Yako, looking worse than she had when she had left them the last time.

"So you're back?" Yako snapped, readying her demon tool. But before she could prepare for an attack, Neuro held his arm out to stop her.

"I don't think she's here to do us any harm," he told her calmly, motioning towards her feet. They were beginning to dissolve, as if she were made out of dust. "It seems she's using the final bits of her life energy to create this possessed space."

"I can tell you where Lady Histerrier is hiding." She repeated, pausing to cough up blood that dissolved into tiny crimson flakes before they reached the ground. "You want to know, don't you?"

"Why the sudden change of heart, hmm?" Neuro asked with a smirk.

"She lied to me. I served her without question and she lied to me!" The other Yako spat. "And now I want to pass on knowing that bitch of a woman will suffer like I suffered."

"Heh, you needn't worry about that- we'll make sure to fulfill your dying wish." Neuro told her. "Just tell us where she's cowardly hiding herself and we'll be sure to give her the slow, painful death she rightfully deserves." The other Yako smiled, seeming almost relaxed despite the fact her body was slowly being broken down.

"Thank you."


	18. Allies

A church had never seemed so intimidating to Yako. Lady Histerrier's location, according to the other Yako, was inside of an old, abandoned church on the outskirts of town among other old, decaying buildings just waiting to be torn down. It's steeples were dark, spiked silhouettes against the lights of the city, the stained glass that used to adorn its windows now scattered about at her feet that crunched under her shoes with each step.

"She's here, I can feel it." Neuro said, disturbingly calm about it. "Her and every last one of her dolls. I'm surprised I wasn't able to feel such a large presence before."

"Maybe she was lying low before now." Yako muttered. "But now she knows we're coming and doesn't see the need to." The thought forced a chill up her spine. The thought that the demon known as Lady Histerrier was expecting their attack and no longer felt the need to hide herself anymore was eerie. She could be waiting for them, just passed those doors, ready to strike before they could even get the chance.

"Well, if she's expecting us, then we shouldn't keep her waiting." Neuro told her coolly, pulling off one of his gloves to ready one set of terrifying claws. Yako gave him an unsure nod as she followed his lead, summoning up her own weapon. Now that there was something tightly grasped in her hand, she could now tell she was shaking. Recalling what Akane had told them, about needing an army to best the terrible demon and her own collection of dolls, made her doubt her and Neuro's power. They'd fought against demons before; they'd even fought against each other. But never before had they gone up against hundreds of other things said to be just as strong as any demon. The thought was strong enough to force her to take a fearful step backward away from the church.

"Yako-" Neuro looked back at her with concern, noticing her cowardly step in the other direction, just as a voice called his name over the silence of the abandoned buildings.

"Neuro, wait!" The two of them turned their attention around to find Akane, of all people, running to them. Clearly out of breath, she stopped once they noticed her, hands on her knees as she took in large gulps of air. Her own weapon was already out, it's long chain dangling around her feet.

"What are you doing here?" Neuro asked coldly, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm here to help you, of course!" Akane panted, regaining her composure as best she could as she told him.

"Why? You've never helped us out before." Yako retorted.

"Shut up- I'm doing this for Neuro." Akane shot back, throwing Yako a belittling gaze yet again as she huffed and puffed. "Both of you are short range fighters, so there's no way you'll be able to stand a chance against Lady Histerrier. I refuse to let Neuro get hurt because you couldn't protect him properly."

"I can-"

"I saw that oh-so-brave step backward, Yako," Akane sneered. "I think it's more than obvious you're incapable and that you need my help."

"Hey, I'm more than capable of-!" Yako began to shout back before Neuro rested his still-gloved hand on her shoulder.

"You can argue over whether you're capable or not all you want." He told her, giving her then Akane a serious look. "It doesn't take away from the fact we do need help, it doesn't matter from who. You two can bicker all you want when this is over. From here until we finish this, you two are allies." Yako and Akane's eyes met for a moment, both still bearing distrust and distaste for the other.

"Fine." Yako finally spoke up, turning away from Akane and back to the abandoned church. She was still terrified of what was lurking beyond the doors, but a new sense of courage –or maybe it was pride- was welling up inside her from Akane's belittling of her. Her hands were still shaking and, in the back of her mind, she couldn't help but continue to worry about what she was about to face. But the feeling of Akane's gaze burning into her back was enough to drive her forward.

"I'll fight with her, but that girl isn't my ally." Akane said coolly, walking towards the church behind her. "I can't rely on someone like her." It seemed as if Neuro was going to say something- whether it was to argue that they needed to work together or that Yako wasn't useless was unknown, since he cut himself off and shook his head as he followed after the two of them.

Once at the large, wooden doors, Yako gingerly pressed against them. Easily giving in to her tiny touch, the doors opened just a crack. But even with that, they loudly creaked, the echo from the noise echoing within the structure. Flinching slightly, she took the weight from her hand off the door, only her fingers pressed weakly against the wood now. Fear bubbling up again, it soon became coupled with annoyance as she heard Akane audibly groan behind her.

"Out of the way." She grunted, pushing Yako out of the way. And with a swift strike of her foot, she sent one of the wooden doors flying off its rusted hinges and into the darkness of the unlit church. Crashing into the isles of the chapel, the noise caused Yako to jump, half expecting to be attacked the moment the door no longer separated them from the inside. But, aside from the din of the door crashing to the floor, nothing met them but silence. And it seemed this fact was a surprise to everyone, considering they were all recoiling out of their battle ready stances once they noticed an army of dolls wasn't there to meet them immediately.

"Is she-?" Yako began to question.

"She's in there, alright, this place reeks of demon." Akane interrupted her, being the first to finally walk into the darkness. "And the killing intent in here is almost overwhelming. And to think this used to be a holy place." Neuro followed after Akane in silence, Yako quickly taking up the rear despite her overwhelming fear.

At first it was too dark to see anything- everything was just a mass of dark shapes and shadows. But, as her eyes adjusted, they fell on a small, sliver of light near the back of the chapel. A still-standing stained glass window remained, a ray of dimly lit colors shining through it from the lights of the city. The colorful light was cast down, acting like a spotlight that fell on the pew where a woman was sitting.

"For someone who gives off such a violent aura, you were quite polite to let us walk in here unchallenged, Lady Histerrier." Neuro commented, with a smirk, to the woman, who graced all three of them with a kind, welcoming smile. Yako looked back at the human-looking woman with surprise. So this was Lady Histerrier?

"I was afraid you wouldn't come- I'm glad to see you made it." She said. Her voice sounded soft and just as strangely friendly as her smile, and that was what frightened Yako the most. She was prepared to slaughter all of them, and she was wearing a calm, dignified smile. "And you brought another person along, how wonderful. All the more useless fools to slaughter." Finally her voice took on an edge, but her smile remained as a hungry look grew in her eyes.

Akane was quick to act to her remark, despite Neuro's shouts for her not to do so, as she chucked her scythe at Lady Histerrier, who didn't even make a move to even flinch. Instead, a figure leapt from the darkness, stopping Akane's attack before it reached her. It was naked and almost featureless- the only things on its face were a pair of pupiless eyes and a lump where a nose would usually go. Its arms, legs and body were all joined together as if, at one time, they'd been separate parts, looking exactly like what it was supposed to be: A doll.

"My, and she's a feisty one at that!" Lady Histerrier laughed as Akane tried to pull her weapon out of the doll's grasp. "This makes things even more interesting." Her kind smile curled into a manic grin as she licked her lips. With a snap of her fingers, other figures began to emerge from the darkness. Some of them were clothed and had hair, as if they were in preparation of becoming humans, but the majority were undressed, and they all had the same, blank expression. Yako looked frantically around, realizing they had surrounded them. She didn't know what to do, where to strike or where to run. The dolls were everywhere, and it was overwhelming and frightening.

"Yako, stay calm." She heard Neuro say. His voice was just as calm as before, but his eyes darted back and fourth and traces of worry were on his features. Yako could see them clearly with her senses enhanced by fear. "If you lose your head, you'll only be giving her what she wants."

"So, I finally get to meet you in person, Yako." Lady Histerrier chuckled blackly. "Funny, I expected to see someone who everyone in hell is talking about to hold herself a bit more strongly. And to think you bested the great Aya in combat- it's quite a shame!" She held up, snapping her fingers again. And, before she could react, one of the dolls out of the hoard lunged at her. She didn't know whether to defend or attack as she held her blades out in front of her. But before she could even begin, Neuro knocked her out of the way moments before a bright flash lit up the dark chapel, followed by a deafening boom that shook the foundation of the church. Over the noise, Yako could hear Akane cry out as she was knocked back by the blast.

"Using your dolls as living bombs? That's a cheap shot." Neuro muttered, groaning in pain. Yako looked up at him with worried eyes, watching his features contort in agony. He'd managed to push Yako out of the way, but he had been unable to shield his own back that was now burned and bleeding.

"It seems I've built quite a large collection, so I can risk getting rid of a handful of them." Lady Histerrier said with a sneer, fingers ready to snap again and command more dolls to attack them. "I won't lose that many of them, though, I doubt it will take long to kill a weak aristocratic brat of a demon, a lowly servant, and a human." With a sick grin she snapped her fingers again, a group of her dolls lunging at them. Neuro gasped in pain, trying to react quick enough while still recovering from his own wounds. And Yako was still on the floor, looking up and feeling absolutely helpless.

'There's too many of them!' Her panicked thoughts cried. But just when she thought the worst would happen, Akane's scythe came flying through the air on its chain, striking each of the dolls and knocking them out of commission.

"Get up, you useless idiot!" She spat, coming into view as she caught her weapon. "Don't just stand around and let Neuro do all the work!" She was quickly pushed back, her attention being stolen by another wave of attacking dolls. Yako looked to Neuro in fright, meeting disappointed, green eyes that were quickly pried away from her as he stopped the attack of another doll, slicing it in two and knocking it back before it could burst into flame. But as he did so, a second doll came up from behind him, going unnoticed.

"Neuro!" Yako gasped, finally finding the strength to leap to her feet as she ran to his aid. She stabbed one of her blades into the doll, quickly tossing it away before it could explode near her.

"Finally decided to get up and fight, have you?" Neuro asked, sounding a bit annoyed, but underneath there was a small hint that he was happy.

"I'm going to prove that brat Akane wrong..." She told him with a grin. "...That I am capable of fighting!" She was frightened still, shaking just as hard as ever, but she didn't want to feel that on top of feeling weak and helpless. If it meant proving herself, she'd dig deep to find the courage she needed to do so.

Sharing one, final glance, the two of them separated, both charging at a group of dolls. Her senses heightened by her own fears, Yako could see every tiny movement, blocking and slicing through the dolls that lunged at her. She couldn't seem to find an opening at all, every time she cut through one, another would effortlessly take its place. Every now and then she caught a glance at Lady Histerrier, who was watching the whole thing with amusement, proud and self assured despite the fact she wasn't even the one fighting.

"Damn, it's like she's been saving all of them up for this moment!" Yako jumped, realizing both her and Akane were back to back, encircled by dolls. "It will take forever to actually find an opening and attack her head on!" The two of them separated for a moment, driving the hoard of dolls back before being forced back together.

"At this rate, she'll exhaust us before we're half way through!" Yako gasped, trying to catch her breath. Her demon tools were leaching off her energy faster than usual, working double time to keep up with the mass amount of enemies.

"I hate to say this, but unless we actually work together, she's going to kill all of us without even lifting a finger!" Akane hissed. Yako looked to her in surprise, shocked that Akane, of all people, would even consider working together with her. She met her gaze, looking like it was paining her to even have mentioned it.

"Don't get me wrong, this has nothing to do with you!" She added as the two of them separated once again. And as the two of them fought desperately to push back the army of dolls, she yelled over the chaos. "This is for Neuro's sake, got it!?" In the confusion of fighting the two of them ended up chasing their own weapons together, looking each other in the eyes as if they were enemies.

"Got it!" Yako nodded. "But you should know, no matter what you do, I'm not letting you have Neuro."

"We'll see about that." Akane smirked, forcing Yako backward. "Now go! I'll clear a path, but if any doll breaks through my defenses, you're on your own!" Before Akane even finished, Yako was already charging ahead. And, just as promised, Akane's weapon hacked away and chained any doll that tried to stop her. She could feel the heat of explosions at her back as she ran, eyes fixed on Lady Histerrier who was still looking on with interest, despite the fact Yako was drawing closer and closer.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." She chuckled, calm as ever, seconds before Yako stuck. Stopping her attack, Yako's blades were inches from jabbing into her throat. And even then she looked at her and gave her a sharp-toothed grin with teeth as sharp and menacing as canine fangs.

"And why is that?" Yako asked, daring to plunge her weapons into her flesh anyway. Lady Histerrier answered with another laugh as she, once again, snapped her fingers to command her army of loyal dolls. The room fell silent, much to her surprise, and the only sound that filled the room now was that of struggling. Yako whirled around to find that the dolls had all stopped moving, but within their frozen grasp were Neuro and Akane, unable to break free.

"If you try anything, I won't hesitate to blow both of these two up." Lady Histerrier snarled. "I know you don't care much for the girl, but I know for a fact that you care very, very much for Neuro. I know you would hate to see him get hurt, or worse, be blown to pieces."

"Yako, don't listen to her!" Neuro shouted while still trying to break free. Yako looked back at him, eyes full of worry and panic, before turning back to Lady Histerrier.

"And what do I have to do to keep you from hurting them?" She asked. This question seemed to please Lady Histerrier, as she grinned widely, as if she's just achieved checkmate.

"Stand down, and give me the Ultimate Mystery quietly, and I won't lay a hand on Neuro." She told her with a sneer. "Don't you think it's a fair price to pay? You're life for his life?"

"Yako, don't do it!" Neuro barked angrily. "Don't worry about me, just don't give her the Ultimate Mystery!"

"But I'm sure the poor girl doesn't want the death of the person she loves the most haunting her, does she?" Lady Histerrier cackled, looking to Yako. "Having you die on her would be worse that dying herself, right?" Yako was silent for a moment, the conflict going on inside her mind making her head spin.

"Fine, take it." She said in a defeated tone, hanging her head. "Just as long as you promise not to hurt Neuro!"

"YAKO!" Neuro calling her name sent a shiver up her spine, but she couldn't be moved. She didn't want him to get hurt because of her. So long as she had the knowledge that he went on living, she didn't care what happened to her.

"Wise choice, girl, very wise indeed." Lady Histerrier chortled, sounding pleased. "But there's something you really must know." Yako looked up at her, only to realize that she had her hand up, fingers ready to snap and give the order to her dolls to kill both Akane and Neuro. Her eyes widened in horror. "I'm a very, very bad liar."

"NO!" Yako gasped, the seconds that slipped by seeming like an eternity as she watched helplessly as she began to give the signal.

'This… this is all my fault!'

The sound of chains clinking together whizzed by her head and took her out of her terrified trance. And then a shrill cry filled the air, bringing her attention to Lady Histerrier, who's fingers she was about to use to snap had been sliced off by a familiar scythe, it's long chain brushing against Yako's face –which meant it had come mere millimeters away from slicing through her as well.

"Don't just stand there, Yako!" She heard Akane shout. She'd barely managed to break through the dolls grip enough to throw her weapon. "Kill her!"

"You fucking bitch!" Lady Histerrier shrieked, ready to raise her other hand. Her face had reverted to how it really looked: angry and dog like. But, before she had the chance to snap again, Yako had leaped forward, burying both her blades deep into her chest, their tips ripping through the back of her. "Ah-!" Continuing her charge, Yako pushed her from her perch on the pew and knocked her onto her back on the ground. Spitting up blood, she howled in pain, as her dolls became weaker as she did, their hold no longer being able to keep down Akane or Neuro.

"You… You…" Lady Histerrier seethed, looking like she was about to use every last bit of energy to curse Yako, who still kept her blades buried inside of her. But instead, her blood-covered lips curled upward.

"Heh, you… May have beaten me… But I wouldn't even bother celebrating your victory." She rasped, pausing to cough up blood. "You're all going to die anyway!"

"And what do you mean by that?" Neuro asked, now standing over the two of them.

"They're coming! They're tired of watching every demon try and fail, and now they're finally coming to kill you!" Lady Histerrier laughed, despite her condition. Every word was nearly muffled to the point of being impossible to understand by blood that flowed out of her lips.

"Who in the world are _they_?" Yako asked, but her question was only met by booming, manic laughter from Lady Histerrier. She laughed, like something was horribly hilarious, her eyes bulging and her long, dog-like tongue lulling from her mouth as she laughed. "Tell me who _they_ are!" Again, she only answered with chuckles that grew weaker and weaker, before stopping completely, the psychotic look of laughing still on her face as she grew completely still.

"Wh-Who do you think she was talking about?" Yako asked, turning to Neuro and Akane.

"I haven't the slightest clue." Neuro told her. "But I think we're going to find out very soon."

* * *

"Wait, Akane!" Yako called. As they exited the abandoned church, she had taken no time in separating herself from them. And, as Yako called her name, she looked over her shoulder as if she was an annoying, yappy dog.

"What do you want?" She groaned, still continuing to walk away.

"I just wanted to say… thanks… for helping me back there." Yako muttered. Something told her Akane wasn't going to appreciate getting thanked, at least by her. She could already tell what she was going to say before it even got said.

"I didn't do it for you, stupid, that psycho was going to kill Neuro, I had to do something." Akane grunted. "And even so…" She finally stopped, letting Yako finally catch up with her. "Even if Lady Histerrier stuck to her word, Neuro would have been a mess without you. Letting her kill you would be just as bad as letting her kill him."

"Akane-"

"Don't you dare take that the wrong way though!" She huffed, turning up her nose. "Neuro's going to belong to me one day- that goes without question- and you're still the bug who's getting in my way… but for now, you're also the bug who's become Neuro's happiness, so I guess I'll have to stand your presence a little bit longer if it means seeing Neuro happy for once." Yako smiled warmly, restraining a chuckle. All things considered, this was probably as good as Akane's good side would get.

"You know, I'm not going to just hand him over to you one day, you know?" She laughed.

"Heh, that's fine, I like a good challenge."

* * *

"Aww, it seems Lady Histerrier died. Poor little puppy never stood a chance."

"I could have told you that, my brother. But I guess it's always fun to watch the weaker ones fall so easily."

"Yes, it is, but it's getting so repetitive, don't you think so, my sister?"

"Yes, without a doubt, and boring games aren't fun at all!"

"I think it's time we stopped sitting back and letting other people play then, my sister. We'll have lots and lost of fun playing the game ourselves!"

"Yes, lots and lots of fun! I can't wait! And when we get the Ultimate Mystery, every day will be lots and lots of fun!"


	19. Dearest Sister

Yako had hardly gotten any sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, her mind would wander, going back to what Lady Histerrier had told her and imagining the frightening figures that would come for her next.

_"They're coming! They're tired of watching every demon try and fail, and now they're finally coming to kill you!"_

A shiver ran through her as the words repeated inside of her mind again, like a broken record. Again, her eyes were pried open by the haunting images she continued to think up. They could be anyone, or any_ thing_ for that matter! In an attempt to calm herself, she focused on the strong arms wrapped around her and the body pressed against her back. It wasn't like she was going to be facing things alone; she had Neuro with her. And they'd overcome so many things before, defeated so many other demons that had come to kill them. What made these new foes any different, what made them so terrifying?

The sound of her alarm buzzing interrupted her thoughts as Neuro shifted around behind her, his arms slowly relinquishing her. Fumbling to turn off her alarm, Yako reached back, forcing his arms back around her.

"Neuro… I know you look down on weakness… but I'm afraid." She muttered, clutching his arms. "We've gone through this sort of thing so many times, but I'm still afraid. I guess I'm still just as much a coward as I was in the beginning." She smiled bitterly, half expecting Neuro to respond with some sharp retort. But, as she flinched, waiting for it, his arms wrapped around her tightly, pulling her close to him.

"It's natural for humans to be frightened." He told her in a surprisingly soft tone. "But you, Yako, are anything but a coward. If you could see yourself the way I've seen you, you'd see for yourself that you're far from being cowardly." Yako couldn't help but smile, her worry fading just a tiny bit as she snuggled closer to him. She would have stayed there, too, safely in his arms, had it not been for the still blaring alarm signaling that she'd have to leave his embrace sooner or later or else she'd have to face down another fear: arriving late to work.

"It's because of you I'm able to do those sorts of things you've seen." Yako told him, reaching out to silence the alarm and sliding out of his embrace with little haste. "You're the reason I can be brave at all." Sitting up, she sighed, not wanting to think about what would have happened had Neuro had not been there when she most needed him. He always happened to be there when she needed him, always her driving force behind the things she did. She didn't want to say it aloud, but without him she was, indeed, still quite the coward. Looking down at her feet, she felt Neuro wrap his arms around her again, sliding up behind her.

"You should learn to be brave on your own terms, worm." He told her softly, his cool breath brushing against her ear. And even though he'd used the old name he used to call her so often, it lacked the sting it used to have. "There could be a day when I won't be here for you at all." Yako refused to even consider what he'd said as she reached up, grasping at the arms that held her. Losing him- even the thought of losing him- was much more terrifying than any demon.

"Just a little while longer." She muttered. "Please let me rely on you… for just a little while longer."

"I can't guarantee anything, Yako." Neuro said sternly, his arms still around her. "But it would be best if you didn't. Courage isn't like love; it's something you should be able to gather on your own. Relying on people to give you courage always ends badly." Yako didn't say a word- only allowed him to embrace her. In his arms, she was safe and in his arms she was brave. She wanted to stay there, wrapped in them for as long as she could, maybe even longer. She could risk being a few minuets late if it meant feeling, for the briefest moments, that everything would be all right.

* * *

"It seems luck is on your side today." Godai grumbled, looking more irritable than usual as Yako rushed back into the studio, still fixing the outfit she'd been hastily given upon arrival. "Looks like everyone else decided to be late this morning." As he continued, he yelled the words over his shoulder at the rest of the staff still setting up the set for the shoot. "So you have a few minutes to actually go back and properly fix that outfit. You're selling the garment, remember? The client will be furious of you do a photo shoot like that."

"Sorry." She muttered, turning around and nearly bumping into Neuro as Godai continued to yell at everyone else. Yako sighed, having long developed the ability to block out Godai's furious yelling when it wasn't directed at her.

"Yako." Neuro hissed urgently, grasping her shoulder. "Something doesn't seem-" She turned around in surprise as a loud rumble suddenly cut him off. At first, it seemed like an earthquake; the ground shook, objects were jostled out of place and crashing to the floor and everyone suddenly became much more panicked –something finally outdoing Godai in scariness. But then, among the rumble of the building madly shaking, a low, sinister laugh resounded. And Yako wasn't the only one who heard it- everyone seemed to look up and look around to try and figure out where the laughter was coming from. Yako craned her neck, too, but her vision was soon blocked by Neuro, who was quick to cover her whole entire body with his as the rumbling became louder, along with the laughter and the cries of the other people around her. The sound of small falling objects quickly became louder and larger as larger objects fell and crashed to the floor. And Yako couldn't see any of it with Neuro practically on top of her and light suddenly vanishing.

"Neuro! What's going on!?" Yako screamed over the din, but she got no response. Her voice was drowned out by mad crashing and cracking as he pushed her to the ground, now fully on top of her as the chaotic noises grew louder. She tightly shut her eyes, just barely being able to hear screams above the thundering noises. What was going on!?

The next thing she knew, the sound had stopped, and the air was filled with dust. Darkness had surrounded her and it suddenly had become difficult to breath. A strained groan from Neuro -who was still above her- later, the sound of rubble being displaced resounded and a ray of light broke through the suffocating darkness. She looked up at Neuro, eyes wide with fright and confusion. Now that he was no longer blocking her, she could see debris all around her that he had shielded her from and also the sunlight that forced her to squint.

Wait… _sunlight_?

With a gasp, she sat up, looking frantically around. Where the building she had been in only a few moments ago stood was now a pile of rubble, and no one else had the convenience of having someone who was able to withstand a falling building to shield them.

"Oh… oh my god!" She gasped, hand over her mouth as she shook her head. Everyone…everyone was…

"Damn, I totally forgot you had a demon with you. I figured I would have squashed you with the rest of them." A voice sighed behind her. She twisted around- tears blurring her vision slightly- to see a girl standing on a pile of fallen building behind her. Her dark hair was pulled back into two pigtails, and her expression was nothing short of manic as she looked down at her and Neuro. "Just a fluke. Next time you won't be so lucky."

Yako began to look around frantically again as the girl laughed. There was no doubt in her mind she was a demon; she'd seen plenty by now to be able to pick them out of normal humans, no matter how normal they seemed at first. But if she had just done something so catastrophic…

"Where is the possessed space?" Yako asked in shock. The old familiar silence of such a thing was not present, and the discoloration that usually came with it was nowhere to be seen. She could hear the distant sound of sirens and the distressed shouts of people from nearby. Everything that had just happened had actually gone down in reality. She didn't take any time to listen to the girl's answer as she frantically stumbled to her feet, ripping and tearing the dress she wore as she climbed clumsily about the rubble, calling names hysterically as she tried to lift the boulders that had once been a building up by herself.

"I didn't see a need." The girl shrugged, not seeming bothered by it at all. "Possessed spaces were created so humans wouldn't get hurt in demon affairs, but really, who cares what happens to a few humans? Your species reproduces like rabbits anyway, you can bare to lose one or two, right?" Yako glared over her shoulder at the girl, eyes brimming with tears and with rage. The last few humans she could truly say she was really close to were now all buried beneath her feet and it was all because of this new demon that stood before her.

"I'll kill you…" Yako growled, her entire body shaking with anger now more than fear. "I'LL KILL YOU!" Shrieking, she summoned her blades and lunged at the girl, who looked back at her as if what she was doing was some sort of joke. But, before Yako could even begin to strike her, a gloved hand reached out and grasped at one of her blades pointed towards her foe, and stopped her in her tracks.

"Yako, stop!" Neuro hissed, blood quickly leaking from his hand that was gripping her blade. Yako quickly obeyed at the sight of the crimson liquid running down her sword and Neuro's arm and stood down. "You shouldn't attack her when you're so angry- nothing good will come of it for you!"

"My, for a servant you're quite wise. I would have let the girl have her fun, myself. That would have gotten my work here done and over with quite quickly." The girl snickered, hopping from the pile of rubble so that she was face to face with the two of them.

"Who… who are you!?" Yako shouted, tears streaming down her face and stinging her eyes. With a light chuckle, the girl curtsied politely, flashing another crazed grin.

"My name is Ai, servant and tool to the offspring of our lord of the underworld." She sneered. "My masters didn't feel the need to dirty their hands in such a pointless game, so they sent me here to take the Ultimate Mystery for them- and how could I say no?" She looked to Neuro with a prideful look in her eyes. "I've been itching to prove myself to my new masters, as well as slaughter the lowly demon I replaced."

"Replaced?" Yako questioned, looking to Neuro, who was angrily glaring at Ai.

"Of course, Neuro wouldn't have been able to have gotten this far if he had been a simple servant to just any demon." Ai explained. "It takes someone of great skill to be worthy enough to serve the ones who were rightfully supposed to be the heirs to hell's throne. Though, of course, our Neuro here only pushed himself that far so he could defy them and go to earth to keep the treasure that was rightfully theirs for himself. Someone so disobedient should be taught a long, hard lesson." Her eyes flashed sinisterly and at first, it seemed as if she were about to attack when the loud clanking of chains rang through the air and a long string of them blocked her path.

"I shouldn't be surprised to see you here," Ai sighed, not seeming the least bit surprised. "Akane…"

"Even you should know it's against regulation to do something like this and not raise a possessed space, Ai!" Akane snapped as she leaped into view, pulling her weapon to her as she took the chain's place in blocking Ai's way. "Just because you're servant to X and XI now doesn't mean you can do whatever you want!" Ai's eye's widened for a split second before narrowing as she laughed once again.

"My, you've certainly gotten bolder since I saw you last, Akane." She snickered, taking one, large step toward her so that she was just within arms length. "I remember when you wouldn't even dare stand up to me; I wonder what your motivation is to have made you act so foolishly." Ai's gaze quickly flickered to Neuro, and Akane quickly went on the offensive, holding her scythe to Ai's throat before she could take another step. She looked down at her, smile fading to a disappointed frown. "So, is that how it is?"

"It is!" Akane spat, thrusting her weapon closer to Ai's neck.

"Seems you've forgotten your place. Rank doesn't always supersede skill, you know?" Ai's lips curled into a smile. "But I suppose, this one time, I'll punish you later, but I do insist we talk about this. It has been such a long, long time since I got to speak to my adorable little sister, after all."

"Why would I want to talk to you!?" Akane snapped, but her question was only met with a chuckle from Ai.

"You'll know where to find me- you always do." She grinned. "But believe me when I say you know as well as anyone that you won't be able to protect the new object of your affections forever." With a leap and a twist, Ai was quick to disappear before Akane could say anything back, leaving the three of them alone with the sounds of sirens growing louder.

"Akane-" Yako began.

"Don't talk to me, trash." Akane interrupted, looking more troubled than angry. She looked to Neuro before tearing her eyes away from him as if he were painful to look at before vanishing as well. Once she was gone, Neuro relinquished Yako's blade, which she quickly let fall to the ground and disappear. Rage and confusion were quickly replaced with sadness again, the whine of ambulances and fire trucks dragging back the fact that she was probably the soul survivor of Ai's attack. Godai… everyone…

Falling to her knees, she buried her face in her hands. Innocent people had died, and it was all because of her. No amount of courage was going to change that.

* * *

Ai looked down at the city below, standing precariously on the edge of the tallest building and gazing down at all the others and the people among them as if they were in infestation of unwanted ants; Ants that would run amok if she didn't so something to exterminate them quickly. In the darkness of the night, only a few lights from the buildings below were able to illuminate the building top she stood on.

"My, you certainly took your sweet time to get here." She said with a smile, not even bothering to turn around and greet the person who was now in her presence. "But I suppose if it's for you, I'd wait an eternity."

"I want you to leave!" Akane shouted over the wind that whistled by, the cold air around them making her breath a white, wispy cloud.

"I'm sorry, I'd love to obey, but you aren't my master anymore, sister dear." Ai smirked, turning to face Akane. "My new masters gave me specific instructions that I'm not to leave here and to have all the fun I want with the Ultimate Mystery's container and that failure of a servant, Neuro." Akane flinched at the mention of Ai having "all the fun she wanted" with Neuro and it seemed to amuse her sister immensely.

"Please, you can do anything to that girl, Yako, just please spare Neuro!" Akane cried, and with that said, Ai's pleasure in Akane's reactions vanished. With blinding speed she shot forward, grasping at Akane's neck –not enough to strangle her, but enough to threaten that any wrong move from her and she most certainly would, and with a smile.

"I've killed so many people, Akane! Mother, Father, all our other siblings who always stole away your attention- I even dragged you down to hell with me, all in hope that you'd see only me!" Ai shouted, shaking Akane furiously. "But even now… even now you refuse to accept my feelings, no matter how strong I get and no matter how many people I slay… I want to be the one who you worry about, not that idiot, Neuro!"

"Sister, please-" Akane began to beg, air suddenly becoming harder and harder to swallow.

"You did this to me, Akane! You drove me into a life of servitude in hell! I made sure you didn't suffer the same fate- that, even in hell, you'd be able to live happily! I traded every scrap of happiness so you'd be happy! But even still, you went and found someone else; someone to give your feelings to! Even in death, you're slowly killing me!"

"…Ai…"

"You owe me, Akane, and for so long I've overlooked how much you do because I wanted you to be happy! But I can't stand it anymore, and now you're going to pay this debt whether you like it or not!" Ai snapped, tightening her grip even more on her sisters throat. "Your resistance against me will be futile, and you know very well I'll make sure I will give Neuro the slowest, most painful death I can bestow upon him. Soon it will come to that no matter how many times you get in my way, even if it means hurting you in the process! But you can spare Neuro such a death, at least, and give him the death you think he deserves, or else it will be me tearing him apart!"

"But…I don't want to-"

"You have no other choice, Akane, not anymore!" Ai snarled. "Either you kill Neuro, or I will!" Akane flinched, clenching her teeth and refusing to give an answer. Ai continued, a smile stretching back across her lips again as an idea came to mind.

"And besides, you'll never have your feelings returned, anyway. His love will always belong to that girl, Yako, no matter what you do. You know how it feels to have such strong feelings for someone, and having those feelings ignored, just like me! You're a demon, Akane- punishing people should be second nature for you! Why not deliver the ultimate punishment, as well as the ultimate sign of your love and kill him. Teach him a lesson for overlooking your feelings as well as save him from the death that I can easily bestow upon him!" Without a word, Akane hung her head in defeat. But Ai knew her persuasion had won out as she let go of her throat, her hands moving up to cradle her sister's head in her hands.

"You won't regret this, Akane." She whispered softly, pulling her closer to her. "And then, it will be just you and me, together again like we were meant to be. All you need to do is just help me, just this once, and I'll give you the love Neuro could never give."


	20. Heartbreak

_"All those people died… they died because of me."_

Yako couldn't help but repeat those words over and over again in her head- the fact that innocent people had lost their lives in a game they shouldn't even have been brought into driving her absolutely mad. And if she had been anywhere else- maybe if she had been a little slower in getting to work or if she's stayed with Neuro a little longer that morning before it happened- they would still be alive.

"You have to leave the apartment sometime, you realize that, right?" Yako looked up to see Neuro looking down at her, dissatisfied. She was huddled up on her bed, a place where she had been for a good amount of time since Ai attacked. The way he was looking at her seemed like he was disappointed, somehow, and she had no choice but to look away from his stare, burying her face into her drawn up knees.

"I don't want to!" She protested. "It's all because of me that everyone at the modeling agency was killed! I don't want to go back out there if it means even more people are going to die!"

"…" Neuro was quiet for a short while before uttering words that send a chill up Yako's spine. "…Why should it matter if more people die?" Yako's head snapped back up as she looked back at him in surprise. She had half expected him to be able to see things from her point of view, even by the smallest bit. But all that really mattered to him was her; the lives of any other humans didn't really faze him, didn't they? All of them were just insects, just like they had been before- but not to Yako. To her the life of any human was much more than that, and having those humans die because of her weighed down on her like a mountain was rested on her shoulders.

"Why should it matter? Why should it _matter_!?" Yako suddenly snapped. "You have no idea how badly it feels to know that people have died because of me. I've been trying to bury it inside of me, because I know if I so much as value a human life other than my own, mourn their passing and wish I had died instead of them, I'll be a coward again, just like when Kanae died!" What was that look Neuro was giving her? It was like he was having a hard time understanding. "It hurts, Neuro! It hurts knowing people are dead because they got mixed up in all of this! Kanae…Higuchi…Godai…everyone. Someone like you, who can only see me and doesn't care about anyone else would never be able to understand!"

"Yako, you-" Neuro began, looking at her sternly, before Yako cut him off.

"It makes me a coward to want this game to end, right? That's what you told me before, when I begged you to kill me when I experienced losing someone… a feeling I wished I would never have to feel again… Does it still make me a coward, Neuro? Now… after all of those people died in an instant, those feelings I thought I'd never feel again are resurfacing, and all I want is for this to end!"

"Stop spouting foolishness!" Neuro snapped. He seemed furious, a look of anger in his eyes that Yako had never seen before. "It doesn't matter what you do, people are going to die whether you want them to or not!"

"So, what, I'm suppose to just sit back and let this game go on and on until I'm dead? Am I supposed to just let more and more people who get involved die? I don't want a life like that, Neuro! Even if it means I'll have you there by my side, I don't want to live that life!" Yako shouted as her voice cracked and tears threatened to flow, but out of instinct she bit them back on front of Neuro. "If you loved me you'd understand that I don't- you'd see that I'm suffering!" She reached out, grasping at one of Neuro's gloves and feeling the cold, metallic talons hidden beneath the fabric before stripping it away, leaving his fearsome claws now exposed. "If you loved me, you wouldn't let me suffer, you wouldn't let me live a life that's full of nothing but fighting and killing! If you loved me, you'd kill me!"

Her last words rang through the apartment, leaving the two of them standing and staring each other down, both of them looking angry at the other with looks that spoke louder than Yako's words. In the corner of her eye, Yako could see Neuro's exposed claws moving towards her just a bit, and out of instinct, she flinched.

"If loving you means killing you…" Neuro finally uttered, his lips drawn down into a sharp frown. "Then maybe it would be best if I didn't love you at all." Yako's angry glare quickly became a shocked, wide-eyed stare as Neuro spoke those words. And Neuro kept his angry look, keeping it fixed on her as he snatched his glove away.

"…Fine!" Yako finally shouted, fists clenched and tears threatening to show themselves. "I don't care! I got by without your love before, I can certainly get by without it now!" She said that, but she couldn't hide the fact that her heart was aching like mad, sending the same, sharp pain through every inch of her body. Hearing Neuro say those words hurt her, but she refused to let him know. She couldn't stand in his presence. Even looking at him was hurting, and her defenses were slowly collapsing.

"I…I don't need you!" She snapped, turning away from him. What was she saying? What in the world was her sadness and heartache making her say? "I'm capable of defending myself now! And if you think it's best not to love me, you have no reason to hang around then!"

"Is that really how you feel?" Neuro asked in a tone as if he were calling her out in a lie. And inside of Yako, sadness was quickly morphing into anger, and words were coming into head that she couldn't even comprehend if she really felt them or not. Something inside for her wanted to hurt Neuro, even if it was impossible. It didn't stop her.

"Yes! That's how I feel!" She shot back, squeezing her eyes tightly shut to keep tears from escaping. "I don't want you here! I don't need you here! So just… Just get out! I HATE YOU!" The room fell quiet again and for a moment, Yako was so sure she had finally done it, even by a little bit. Maybe her words had shocked him into silence, and maybe that angry look of his would bare a little bit of sadness. But, as she re-opened her eyes she saw nothing at all. Neuro was no longer standing before her, leaving behind only purple feathers that brushed softly against Yako's feet and the ugly feeling still churning inside of her.

"Neuro?" She called, looking around, her calls of his name becoming more frantic the more times he didn't answer. "N…" She stopped short of calling his name again, pressing her lips tightly together as her vision blurred from tears that she could no longer hold back anymore. What did she expect? She told him to leave and insisted that she didn't need him anymore. She had even gone as far as to tell him she had hated him. Of course he'd be gone.

"I don't need you." She sobbed quietly, hiding her face in her hands. And every time she repeated those words, memories flashed before her eyes. "I don't need you." She remembered Neuro holding her through the night and the feeling of cold lips. "I don't need you!" She remembered when Neuro finally accepted her feelings and the restored memories of when they had first met back in her youth. "I DON'T NEED YOU!" She remembered the first gift he'd ever given her.

At remembering that, she reached up and grasped the hairclip in her hand and ripped it out of her hair. With all of her might she threw it, watching it as it hit the ground and shattered at her feet amongst the feathers left behind by Neuro. She stared down at the accessory that was now lying in pieces about the ground, breathing heavily as if she was trying to catch her breath. And as she stared down at the broke trinket, the words Neuro had told her when he had first given it to her echoed in her mind.

"It has a tracker on it, so no matter where you go I'll know where you are."

The last and final thing binding her to him- the last thing that could be used to know where she was and to remember him by- was broken. It was gone, just like him. Shattered, just like their bond they had shared.

Falling to her knees, Yako finally began to heavily cry. She cried until her eyes hurt, until her voice was hoarse and until it began to seemingly drain her of her energy. Hunched over on her hands and knees, hands tightly grasping at broken pieces of the hairclip, memories of Neuro continued to assault her mind. The bad times, the good times, the times where he had saved her life, the few times she'd actually been able to save his. The feeling of warmth that came from knowing that someone loved her as much as he did, and how much it hurt to notice that warmth had vanished.

This was a whole different feeling from having people die because of her. She had denounced her feelings for the person who probably cared more about her life more than his own, and now he was gone. It wasn't like the other times he had left her, she had never said such hurtful things to him before he had gone those few times. For the first time, it felt like he was truly gone.

* * *

Yako awoke to the sound of rain and darkness greeting her vision. She pushed herself up, her head feeling heavy. It felt as if she'd cried out every single last one of her emotions, and all she was now was a shell. Her eyes still ached from crying, and her throat was dry from sobbing, but the pain she had felt in her heart was gone, along with everything.

"Finally decided to wake up, huh?" A familiar voice chuckled. Her body finding new energy, Yako's head snapped up to find a familiar figure to match the voice sitting at her window, dripping with rainwater. "I'm surprised, I expected to find Neuro here as well. Oh well, wherever he is, I know my dear Akane will find him."

"Ai…" Yako hissed, her muscles tensing.

"Miss me?" Ai asked with a sneer as she hopped down, landing before Yako, her feet crushing one of the purple feathers that still littered the ground. "My, my, my, what's with the sad face, you should be happy that I'm here."

"Why in the world would I be happy to see you?" Yako snarled, every bit ready to summon her demon tool to defend herself from the grinning demon looming above her.

"Because I'm here to finally take you out of this game. You no longer have to suffer and watch as more humans die. That's what you want, right?" Ai's voice sounded almost mocking as she asked. "You don't want anyone else to die because you want to live so badly, right?" The words she spoke stung, but at the same time they were tempting, almost coaxing out a plea for her to, yes, kill her. But something forced those words back down as she glared back at her.

"No…I don't want anyone else to die…" Yako muttered. "But instead of letting myself be killed, I'll kill you before you can kill anyone else!"

"My, aren't you all the more attractive when you're mad." Ai smirked, kneeling down and reaching out to grasp Yako's chin before she had a chance to stop her. "But I'd watch that tongue of yours if I were you. You, kill me? That's absurd. A little insect like you can't hope to kill me, demon tool at your disposal or not!"

"And why is that?" Yako asked angrily, trying to wrench herself away.

"Because…" Ai began to explain, lifting her freehand that slowly began to twist and change. Her skin stretched out and became solid, and her muscle and bone bent in unnatural ways. Soon her entire arm was nothing more than a giant blade. "You can't hope to defeat someone who's a living weapon. Neuro's just the tip of the iceberg, all he has are those claws of his. But a real, perfect servant, can take any part of their body and turn it into a weapon for their master, and that's just what I've achieved! No matter where you strike, I have no blind spots. Every inch of my body can become a weapon I can use to defend myself… and slice you in two!"

Grunting angrily, Yako summoned her demon blades, swiping at Ai the instant she felt them form in her hand. Ai nimbly leaped out of harms way, claw-like fingernails leaving shallow cuts as she was forced to let go of Yako's chin.

"Heh, fighting me so angry is going to get you hurt, you know?" Ai asked with a smirk. "Not that it matters, I guess things are better that way. And you don't have Neuro here to stop you this time from doing anything stupid, which is a bonus for me." Ai lifted her hand, snapping her fingers. The small noise suddenly echoed, silence surrounding them as Yako's room vanished from around them. Now all they were in was a totally empty world dyed a sickly green.

"I thought you didn't use possessed spaces." Yako muttered, unsteadily getting to her feet. Her entire body felt like it was made of lead.

"I don't- this is one that my dearest Akane lent me, insisting that I don't break anymore rules." Ai explained. "The special thing about this one is that no other demons aside me and Akane can enter this space unless we say so. So your dear Neuro won't be here to help you this time, no matter how badly he wants to."

"What do you mean? Akane has helped us before, and she'll do it again!"

"No, I sincerely doubt that." Ai's smirk grew wider as she readied herself to lunge at Yako and attack. "It seems Akane has had a change of heart these days. And while I cut you to tiny bits in here, she'll be taking care of Neuro in the same exact fashion." Yako's eyes widened in surprise as her grip on her blades grew tighter.

"What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything, stupid girl." Ai cackled. "I only helped Akane realize that the only thing she needs is her sister's love, and no one else." And without another word, Ai lunged at Yako, the blade that had once been her arm ready to cut into her.

* * *

Drenched in rainwater, Neuro walked about the empty streets of the city. He hated that Yako's words still echoed in his mind and that her furious shouts of how she didn't need him anymore were lingering, refusing to leave him. Had anyone else said those words to him, it hardly would have matterd, but somehow hearing Yako snap at him in such a way remained, replaying over and over again in his mind, refusing to stop. She'd ripped his glove from his hand and demanded he kill her, she'd insisted that she no longer needed him around, she'd screamed her words of hatred to his face. And on top of all that, he could no longer sense the familiar feeling of knowing where she was from the hairclip she always wore. It was as if Yako had disappeared all together, and he despised how it was making him feel.

Hurt.

Stopping in his tracks, teeth clenched in anger, he lashed out and punched a nearby wall, the cement easily cracking as his fist collided with it.

"Dammit…" He spat. Why could he not forget about her? He couldn't forget about how sad and how angry she looked in response to his words and how badly he wanted to comfort her but had held himself back. He couldn't even try and ignore the sharp pain that was building in his chest ever since then, and keep words they had spoken to each other days before from flooding his memory.

_"You should learn to be brave on your own terms, worm. There could be a day when I won't be here for you at all."_

_"Just a little while longer. Please let me rely on you…for just a little while longer."_

Above the sound of the rain and the din of his own thoughts, he was just barely able to hear the clanking of chains growing louder behind him. Quickly pushing himself away from the wall, a familiar sickle that was most likely meant to have been buried in his back cut a deep gash in his arm before burying itself into the ground. Neuro snapped his head around to see Akane standing behind him, looking back at him blankly through the rain as she pulled her weapon back to her hand.

"Akane, what are you doing here?!" Neuro asked, though a better question would be why in the world she had attacked him with full intent to kill him.

"I'm saving you." Her voice hardly carried over the rain pounding against the ground. "I'm here to save you by taking your life."

"That doesn't make any sense!" Neuro barked, removing one of his gloves and narrowly blocked a second attack with his claws, sparks lighting up the darkness around them for a moment as Akane's sickle collided with them. "How in the world is killing me supposed to save me!?" He grunted in frustration, knocking away yet another attack, the sickle only whirling around in the air and attacking him in a different spot. He was so concentrated on defending himself from her attacks and so distracted by trying to figure out what in the world she meant, he didn't realize he was soon surrounded by the ever-growing length of chain until it was too late. With a quick pull from Akane, the chains tightened around Neuro, tightly binding him, her sickle poised mid-air to end it all and pierce into him.

"If I don't do this, Ai will… Ai will…" Akane muttered. It seemed as if she were hesitating, her body poised to command her weapon to make the final blow, but her mind refused to let her do it. Or maybe it was her heart that was keeping her still. Neuro was about to bite back and protest, snap at her for being so stupid as to be manipulated by her sister, but he stopped himself short. What did it matter if he died or not, there was no reason to stay on earth anyway, Yako had made damn sure to let him know that.

"If you really think that killing me will help, then kill me." He murmured. Akane looked at him in surprise as she pieced together what had happened simply by reading the expression on Neuro's face. His eyes that usually glowed with determination seemed dull with defeat.

"W-What about Yako!?" She asked. Why was she asking him that? She came here to kill him, not to worry about him and_ especially_ not worry about Yako. So why in the world did she feel the need to ask?

That smile on Neuro's face, the one she had allowed Yako to be by his side so that it would remain, was nowhere to be seen.

"What about her?" Neuro growled back. "She no longer needs me, so what's the point of remaining here in a place where I'm not wanted? Useless things should be gotten rid of." For a second, Akane almost went through with it, almost forced herself to kill him if that was truly what he wanted. But she stopped herself, the sickle inches away from Neuro now.

"I can't…" She muttered, falling to her knees. "I can't do it, I can't!" The chains that tightly bound Neuro fell limply around him. Face buried in her hands she shook her head as her shoulders furiously shook. "Ai told me that unless I didn't kill you, she'd slaughter you herself, and as much as I don't want that to happen… there's no way could kill you, Neuro, no matter if you want me to or not!"

"And why is that?" Neuro asked in an unfeeling tone.

"Because… because I love you!" Akane sobbed. "I love you, Neuro, more than anything! And if killing you hurts me, seeing you like this hurts me even more! I want you to be happy, and I know removing you from this world isn't going to do that!"

"What makes you so sure about what does and doesn't make me happy?"

"Because, no matter what Yako said to you, I know that you love her! She's the only one who truly makes you happy. I know if I kill you, then you'll be miserable because she won't be able to reach you once I do! Killing you won't save you… Yako's love is what's going to save you."

"You're a little too late with those words of yours." Neuro snarled. "Yako doesn't need me anymore. She even said so herself that she hates me. The one thing you claim that could save me no longer exists, don't you understand!?" The two of them were quiet for a moment, nothing but the sound of heavy rain filling the silence. "If that's the case, if there's not saving me, you should have no trouble killing me now."

"Neuro, I-"

"Kill me!" Neuro snapped. "You came here to kill me, so do it!" Then, just as he spoke those words, the sound of someone softly calling him reached him as his eyes grew wide in surprise.

_"Neuro…"_

It was Yako's voice! It wasn't a replay of a distant memory, it was as if he could hear the words she was saying at that moment echo in his head.

_"…I'm sorry…"_

* * *

Yako staggered backward, nearly falling as Ai knocked away another one of her attacks. Her energy was on its last legs; she could feel her entire body shaking, working overtime to keep her standing. She gasped for breath as sweat trailed down her face and body, the salty liquid running into cuts that covered her body and stinging her. Ai was only playing with her, none of her wounds were all that deep, but even then she was exhausted.

"Aw, tired already? I figured you'd have a lot more fight in you than that!" Ai laughed as she lunged at her again. Yako blocked her blow, but the impact sent her flying backward onto her back, both of the blades she held in her weakening grip flying from her hands and out of her reach. She scrambled into a sitting position, but before she could get to her feet, Ai's blade that used to be her arm was pressed against her neck. "Heh, the only look that looks better on you than anger is the one you have on right now. The look of defeat- of weakness." She pushed her blade up under Yako's chin, forcing her to look up at her so she could get a better look at the expressions on her face.

"Any last words you feel like sharing, then?" She cackled. Yako stared up at her, her mind falling on one person. He was the one person that would have been there to help her, to save her and the one person she'd carelessly tossed away in a fit of anger and sadness. She could say she hated him as many times as she wanted- tell herself she didn't need him as many times as she wanted- now at deaths door, she knew that she'd never be able to convince herself that she was better without him and that her feelings for him would always remain intact.

"Neuro…I'm sorry." She said softly.

"Hmm? What was that?" Ai questioned before shrugging and drawing back her blade, readying herself for slicing Yako in two. "It doesn't matter. Now, show me the Ultimate Mystery!" Yako squeezed her eyes tightly, bracing herself, his name slipping passed her lips once more.

"NEURO!"

A loud clang rang through the air, Ai's weapon that had once been her appendage never reaching Yako. And before Yako opened her eyes, whatever had blocked Ai's attack spoke.

"You can hate me all you want, Yako, say that you don't need me all you want- the fact still stands that you still do need me around seeing as you're on the ground allowing yourself to be killed." Yako's eyes snapped open, looking up to see the one person she had not expected to see saving her yet again.

"…Neuro…"

"And your feelings for me does nothing to change how I feel about you, no matter how many times you tell me you no longer love me." He said, looking back at her with his glowing, green eyes. "I love you, no matter what happens."


	21. Demon

Yako stared back at Neuro, his last words echoing in the silence of the possessed space for what seemed like an eternity, her eyes now brimming with tears looking into his.

"I love you no matter what happens."

The moment was brought to a close by a loud cackle that devoured the last echoes of what Neuro had said, filling the air around them. It was Ai, who was taking a few unsteady steps backward while laughing hysterically.

"A _demon_? Love a _human_? That's absurd! A demon feeling lust for a human, now that I believe, but actually having such strong feelings for a _human_? You really are a failure of a demon, you know that?" She laughed. "All the better to get rid of you! Though there's the question of how in the world you managed to get in here…"

"I brought him here!" Ai snapped her head to the side to see Akane, standing a ways off and weapon in hand, staring her down with a look that was saturated with hate. Ai suddenly didn't find Neuro's feelings for Yako all that funny as she glared back at her sister with bared teeth.

"So, this is your answer, then? You really will reject my love so you can go on chasing after someone you'll never even have!?" She snapped, looking very much ready to pounce and attack Akane instead of Neuro or Yako. "Or maybe you've brought him here to die?"

"I know he's someone I'll never have!" Akane shouted, her grip on her weapon tightening. The fact she was actually admitting it was enough to get a surprised look from Neuro. "From the moment I met him I knew he'd never return my feelings- that from the start I'd never been the one person he truly loved. I hated that feeling at first, and like you I couldn't even imagine why he felt anything for a human… but then I realized… I didn't want to love him… I just wanted him to be happy!"

"Happy?" Ai questioned, her angry look not softening in the slightest.

"And killing him and separating him from that human I thought I hated so much isn't going to make him happy! Forcing him to love me isn't going to make him happy either! The only thing that truly makes him happy is that human…Yako…" Akane paused, her head hanging and a slight quiver running through her before she straightened up and took a more fighting stance. "And if that's the case, then I'll fight so that I can preserve that happiness, even if it means fighting you, my own sister, alongside the person who stole Neuro's heart from me!"

"If you know you'll never have your feelings returned then why fight for him at all!?" Ai snarled, "Demon's aren't tools for preserving happiness, we exist to cause misery- to destroy happiness!"

"And that's exactly what I'm doing, sister dear." Akane bit back, acid in her voice as she went on. "The one I choose to cause misery, whose happiness I'll destroy…is yours!"

"W-What?" Ai gasped, a look of complete and utter shock mixing violently with the look of rage already on her face. "What do you… mean by that?"

"You killed everyone special to me when we were alive, and then you dragged me to hell where there was no chance I'd ever see them again!" Akane shouted. "You destroyed my happiness by being selfish and greedy, you made me miserable by making sure I'd always remain alone. So I'm going to return the favor: I'm going to make sure you become just as miserable as me by denying all your feelings for me!"

"A…Akane…" Ai, who had once been holding herself with pride, stumbled backward from the force of Akane's words, the look on her face almost begging her to stop.

"If I'm a tool to cause misery, then I'll preserve Neuro's happiness solely so you'll be miserable! I…" Akane bit her words back at first, as if she were having second thoughts, but a second later her angry look returned as she shot Ai one last, hatred-filled glare. "I hate you, Ai!"

"No… No…" Ai mumbled, eyes as wide as they could possibly be as she shook her head, but Akane's unwavering look proved what she was hoping was all talk was completely serious. A deathly silence followed, preceding Ai throwing her head back and emitting a manic wail that almost seemed to shake the possessed space. Akane and Neuro stood their ground, expecting anything to happen next as Yako unsteadily got to her feet and rush to retrieve one of her blades.

"Look out!" She heard Neuro shout, moments before she felt him pull her back. Hardly even a second later a jagged, spiked chain whizzed by, mere inches away from having gutted her. She gasped, propelling herself backward now into Neuro. As Ai continued to cry, dozens more of the same sort of jagged chain sprouted from her body, chaotically swinging in all directions.

"It's too late to get your weapons now!" Neuro shouted over Ai's screams as he wrapped one arm around Yako and brought her close to him. He removed the glove of his free hand with his teeth just in time to block one of the wildly swinging chains with his claws. "Just hold on!" As much as it made her feel like a weakling, Yako obeyed, pressing herself against Neuro and clutching his shirt as she felt him leap around, trying to avoid Ai's haphazard attacks.

"Aah!" A second shrill cry could be heard over Ai's howling, and in the corner of her eye, Yako could see Akane loosing her footing, her own weapon being knocked from her hands as she fell to the ground.

"Neuro, Akane!" Yako cried out, motioning to the fallen girl who was now seconds away from being run through by one of the chains. Neuro silently obeyed, maneuvering as quickly as he could through the constant rain of chain and reaching Akane just in time to knock what was about to obliterate her away.

"Akane, you idiot, get up!" He snapped, throwing her a side-glance that was met with a fearful one as Akane gasped.

"Look out!" She cried, but her warning had come a second too late. In the split second when he turned to look back at her another length of jagged chain had begin to hurtle towards him and Yako. He couldn't block the blow completely, only change to attacks direction that struck his arm instead of his side. But despite that, the power from the blow was enough to knock Neuro from his feet and lose grip of Yako as the two of them were thrown to the ground.

"Shit! Yako!" Neuro gasped, looking up just in time to see another chain speeding towards her, who was still out of sorts from being knocked from Neuro's grasp. His mind reeled as the scene played out before his eyes as if in slow motion. There was no way he'd be able to pick himself up and block the blow in time, just watch in defeat as the person he had just proclaimed his love for perished before his eyes.

"YAKO!"

Suddenly, the air was eerily still, the echo of Neuro's final cry of Yako's name all that was ringing through the air now. Ai's terrible screams had ceased, leaving the air ringing from the sudden silence, and the chains that had once been wildly flying all around now all stopped, suspended mid air all around them. But the cries and the attacks hadn't stopped because Yako, the Ultimate Mysteries container, had finally been vanquished. No, she was still very much alive, her frantic, panicked breaths filling the silence.

"You're… the idiot… who should have gotten up." Neuro and Yako's eyes widened at the sight. The attack meant for Yako was now buried deep in Akane's now profusely bleeding chest. Once she'd spoken, a river of blood flowed from her mouth and splashed onto the ground. Her entire body shook as the puddle of blood forming around her grew larger, but her eyes were filled with anything but fear. In fact, she seemed almost peaceful, looking down at the jagged chain lodged inside of her.

"Akane!" Neuro gasped, running to her side as the chain that brought her demise slowly retracted itself. Catching her before she could fall, he held her delicately as he laid her on the ground, eyes wandering up and down her body as if looking for a way to save her.

"A…Kane…" Ai muttered, her eyes still wide in disbelief as she watched the scene in utter shock. The person who she did everything for, the person she lived and died for, the only person who mattered was dead. And it was all because of her.

"Is… is she going to make it?" Yako asked, shifting around so she, too, was hovering over Akane, who coughed up another mouthful of blood.

"…" Neuro looked down at Akane as she suffered in silence for a long, drawn out moment. "I'm afraid she isn't going to…"

"D… Don't look so sad… Neuro." Akane wheezed, followed by another bout of coughing.

"Don't speak!" Neuro commanded, but Akane weakly shook her head.

"I'm… going to die anyway… what difference does it make… if I stay quiet or not?" She asked, her voice shaky as if she were suppressing tears. "If anything… it's best that I die… because I can free you… Neuro…" She reached up, stroking Neuro's cheek with a blood covered hand.

"Free me?" Neuro looked back at her in confusion, "What do you mean by free me?"

"You may no longer…have the bonds that force you to serve against your will…but you're still a servant. Your potential as a demon is held back by that roll alone…" Akane paused, fading in and out for a moment before snapping back into a state of almost half consciousness. "And despite the fact it is forbidden… that servant's first, original master has the power to take that… title away." She smiled weakly once her words finally started making sense to Neuro, who looked back at her in surprise. "I take it you remember… who your first master was, Neuro."

"…It was you." Neuro muttered. "…but if you do that, you'll be punished for sure!"

"I've already… done many other forbidden things already… I came to earth against orders… I returned memories to someone who had them taken away… Sure, if I return to hell I'll be punished…" She paused as she took in a long, labored breath before her peaceful look returned, her lips still drawn up in a smile. "I'm going to die anyway… whether or not I've done something forbidden won't matter…once I'm gone."

"Akane…" The look on Neuro's face was almost grief stricken.

"Don't look at me like that… Neuro." Akane mumbled. "Before I go… before I free you from servitude… I want to see your smile one last time… I want to believe that smile will remain there when… I'm gone." Neuro looked down at Akane sadly for a short while longer as he reached up and rested his hand on top of hers that was still resting on his cheek.

"As you wish…master." He said in almost a whisper, a smile just as weak of hers just barely stretching across his lips. At that moment, it was as if a warm breeze swept through the possessed space. Physically nothing had changed, but even Yako could feel the strange new feeling in the air, as if it were filled with electricity.

"How many times…did I tell you back then…not to call me… master?" Akane sighed, exhaling one last time and not taking in another breath as her hand slipped from Neuro's cheek and fell limply to the ground. With her eyes closed, she only looked as if she were resting, the smile still on her lips even in death. In time her body crumbled into dust that was carried away by a gust of wind, leaving nothing left of her. For what seemed like hours Neuro and Yako were silent, looking at the empty space where Akane had once lay.

"Akane… Akane…" The sound of hysterical sobbing finally reached them, and they looked up to find Ai still standing in the same spot, her face buried in her hands. "She can't be dead! She can't be!"

"Of course she's dead." Neuro said, now with a snarl as he stood to his feet. Something in his voice sounded frightening now, and it sent a shiver up Yako's spine as she watched him stand. "You should know, you killed her."

"No! I…I didn't mean to… It… It's all your fault!" Ai's sadness quickly spiked into rage as she looked back at Neuro with eyes now red from crying, her face stained from tears streaming down her face. "It's your fault Akane is dead! It's your and that human's fault she's gone!"

"While it's true that Akane did die saving Yako, it's not either my nor her fault that Akane is gone." Neuro lowly growled, using his teeth to remove his over glove and reveal his second set of fearsome claws. "The fault goes to the person who flew into an uncontrollable rage without even thinking she might harm the one thing that mattered to her most. The person to blame is the one who dragged Akane into this fight in the first place, manipulated her, and pushed her and made her suffer so much she couldn't stand the thought of having any fond feelings for her."

"Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!" Ai screamed, but Neuro refused to obey.

"The fault is yours alone, Ai, and somewhere in that twisted heart of yours you know for a fact that it's true, you just don't want to face it…" His lips twisted into a cruel smile, revealing his razor-sharp teeth. "…Because despite how strong you claim to be, being a living weapon for masters that servant demons could even dream of, all you are is a sniveling coward."

"I TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP!" Ai snapped, sending one of her spiked chains sailing in his direction, but her attack was easily blocked without even a look of strain from Neuro. "SERVANTS SHOULD DO AS THEY'RE TOLD!"

"Oh? Didn't you hear, though?" Neuro chuckled, knocking a second attack away and sending a shower of sparks through the air as he did so. "Before she died, your dearest sister freed me from the shackles that keep me bound to serving anyone. Now, I'm at a rank that doesn't live to serve, but lives to give orders to trash like you."

"She couldn't have!" Ai shrieked, sending wave after wave of attack at Neuro, only to have it blocked. "She didn't!"

"You can say that as much as you try to push the blame of things onto other people, it won't change anything." Neuro said with a sneer. "And by removing the title of servant from me, she also removed something locked inside of me, held down by that title. And what better way to use this newfound power than getting rid of an annoying little insect?" Neuro merely sidestepped the next attack from Ai and grasped the jagged chain without so much as a flinch. With all his might he pulled on it, pulling the length of chain and Ai towards him. A cry of fright from Ai was cut short as she came just close enough to Neuro that he could run his claws through her and send her sailing backward again with deep wounds now in her gut.

"G…Guh!" She coughed, blood oozing from her mouth. But despite her wounds, she still forced herself to stagger back to her feet, the blood pouring from her wounds only flowing out faster as she strained her body.

And while she forced herself back onto her feet, Neuro's body went through a frightening transformation. His head began to morph into an almost birdlike shape, and vibrant purple feathers broke free of his clothes. Long, curled horns grew out of the back of his head, and as the massive beak that had begun to form parted, he revealed menacing, pointed teeth. Before long, Ai was staring down a fearsome bird demon, and Yako, in the background, was backing away. This was a whole new side to Neuro she would have never guessed in her wildest dreams she would see. A form of Neuro that would, even now, terrify her.

"What's the matter? You look scared, Ai." Neuro chuckled darkly, his voice much more booming and threatening before. "Where's all that pride you had before, all that self assurance?" Ai stood her ground for a moment, still staring down the newly developed creature that stood before her with a look of petrified fear before crying out in desperation, every one of the spiked chains in her control all heading in Neuro's direction. But instead of all of them striking him, the struck the ground and their original target was nowhere in sight.

"W-Where is he!?" Ai gasped, whipping her head around.

"Why not try behind you?" A cruel voice asked, and before Ai could turn all the way around, and before she could even gasp or cry out, Neuro's fearsome claws sliced her body clean in two.

"Ah-!" was all that passed through her bloody lips as her upper half fell to the ground, followed closely by her other half. And at first she seemed dead, but the terrifying bird-like creature kept his eyes on her body, as if waiting for something to happen. And despite having been sliced into two pieces, Ai suddenly gasped sharply, arms reaching out in desperation to try and pull her legless body.

"Still alive, even after a blow like that?" Neuro said, sounding almost disappointed she was still alive. "You must be stronger than I thought. A pity, such power is trapped inside such a lowly vessel. Oh well, I guess this gives me the opportunity to savor your death all the-" Neuro stopped suddenly, groaning in pain as the form he was in began to unravel. The bird-like face, horns and feathers all began to disappear as he reverted back to his old self, now looking dazed and spent.

"Neuro!" Yako gasped, having no fear now that Ai was in no condition to fight and Neuro had returned to normal. She dropped beside Neuro, who had fallen to his knees as he tried to catch his breath.

"Hmmm? It looks like he can only keep that form for a short period of time." A new, childish voice suddenly rang through the air, the person behind the voice nowhere in sight. "I guess that's good news for us, right, my sister?"

"Quite right, my brother, it wouldn't be much fun at all if he stayed looking like an ugly bird for very long." Two figures appeared before Ai, who was still trying to drag herself away, one being a pale skinned girl with long black hair, and the other was a white haired boy with an equally pale complexion. The both of them had piecing blue eyes and were dressed head to toe like royalty.

"Sh…shit!" Neuro gasped, his body going rigid.

"What? Who are they?" Yako asked, looking to Neuro with worry in her eyes.

"They are X and XI, Satan's spawn and the original heirs to hell's throne."

"Very good, Neuro, you haven't forgotten about us after all this time, and despite the fact you served us for such a short time." XI said cheerily, lacing her fingers together as she smiled. "We were quite lonely without having you to play with, by the way, isn't that right, my brother?"

"Very, but even more so it was boring, even with our new toy-" X began to say just as Ai reached up and grasped his jacket with a blood-covered hand.

"Forgive…me… my masters… I… I was so close…" She sputtered. "But…if you just give me more power… I swear I'll get you the Ultimate Mystery! So please, heal me so I can better serve-" X and XI's strangely kind looks suddenly went sour as they looked down at their bloodied servant. Their cold looks alone were enough to silence her as X reached down and grasped her by her head, lifting her legless body up into the air.

"Silly Ai, we never said we wanted you to get the Ultimate Mystery." He told her with a sickening smile.

"But you said-"

"We said to play with them, when did we say we wanted you to kill them?" XI asked. "We knew all along you were going to die no matter what you did, and you were such a bore of a toy anyway, so me and my brother decided that we might as well get some entertainment out of you before we get rid of you." She gave Ai a kind smile, but her eyes bore a chilling, menacing look.

"And you didn't fail to please, watching you fight was, indeed, quite fun." X said, nodding his head.

"Then-" Ai began to protest.

"But now the fun is over. We want to play with Neuro and Yako now." XI interrupted, still smiling. "So we don't need you anymore."

"Please, masters, I beg of you! I'll do anything! ANYTHING!" Ai begged, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Ai…" X sighed, looking as if he were about to give in to her frantic request. "…You're dismissed." Before Ai could scream again, he clutched her head and effortlessly crushed Ai's skull. Blood and bits of brain spewed from the shattered cranium, and both X and XI watched it all happen with sickening glee.

"Broken toys should stay broken." XI giggled with delight as X tossed Ai's remains to the side. And now that she was no longer holding their attention, the two of them turned their cold gazes and deceivingly sweet smiles to Neuro and Yako. And despite his condition, Neuro forced himself to his feet, readying himself to fight.

"So eager to play, that's what we like about you, Neuro." XI said with a smile. "But it wouldn't be any fun playing with you while you're in such a state, right, my brother?"

"Mmm hmm," X agreed with a nod of his head. "We want to have the most fun we can have with you as possible, Neuro, you should be honored. We've never been so eager to play with anyone else before."

"There's no honor in being another one of your playthings." Neuro spat, but neither X or XI reacted- only smiled.

"We'll leave you to rest for a day, your body should heal quicker now that you're no longer bound to being a servant." XI explained. "But don't you worry, we won't leave you or Yako for too long, we would hate to keep either of you waiting. We've anticipated this long enough, even a day is way too long."

"So until then, Neuro, Yako." X snickered, taking XI's hand. "We'll return later for our play date." His final words echoed as the possessed space disappeared, along with X and XI. Yako and Neuro were back in Yako's apartment, both of them shocked into silence.

"Neuro… what are we going to do?" Yako finally asked with a shaky voice.

"Pray for a miracle." Neuro muttered between gulps of air. "That's what it's going to take to make it out of a battle with those two alive."


	22. Human

The day before X and XI were presumed to return, a strange calm had fallen over Yako, despite the circumstances. The battle to possibly end all battles had finally shown itself and once the general shock that it was going to happen passed, it was as if she was feeling nothing at all. And while Neuro rested, regaining his strength, she slipped out of the apartment, every inch of her begging to not be cooped up inside of her little apartment while she waited for the inevitable to happen.

All day she mindlessly wandered, getting lost and finding how to get back to familiar territory for hours without much of a thought. Walking along the crowded streets without Neuro trailing behind her was strangely unthreatening for once, and the thought that she could possibly be attacked by another demon hardly crossed her mind at all. It was the calm before the storm, and a few things aside, it was almost like she was back in her old life where her worries didn't include demons or people around her dying or even Neuro. During those mindless hours as she wandered, it was as if everything had gone back to normal, more or less.

And eventually, that feeling of normality ended up leading her to the old, usual place: The modeling agency, or what was left of it, anyway. The remains of the destroyed building was surrounded by a high fence, the tops of construction equipment just barely visible, peeking over the wall. Yako stared up at the emptiness where the building used to fill the skyline. To think it hadn't been too long from when she was still modeling there, living from day to day, producing mediocre work. And now she was in front of the destroyed building, one hell of a model but no place to model in, no one to model for, and no one to cheer her on.

Moving on just a bit, she walked over to the ally way where the whole mess she was in now had began. With the fence surrounding the destroyed modeling agency building, there was now hardly any space to leave a dumpster, but just enough space for a single person to walk through. And after looking around just in case there was anyone who might stop her she did just that: venturing into the ally way that was much more narrow than before.

She wandered in a ways before leaning against the building that was still standing. Looking up at the skies now being dyed vibrant colors by the setting sun she slowly slid from her feet to the ground, eyes never leaving the sky above her. The last time she'd been out there, looking up at the sky, she had felt hopeless and just wanted to disappear. Now that she was back there, in the place where it all began, she couldn't help but feel the same way. She felt hopeless with the thought of fighting against X and XI. The way Neuro had worded it, it sounded like no one could hope to defeat them. And she simply wanted to disappear before any of it happened- just vanish and avoid it altogether and finally escape the cruel game she'd been placed in.

And finally, for the first time that day, she finally felt something. Emotions about the upcoming battle finally bubbled to the surface all at once as tears began to burn at her eyes. She was scared out of her mind, and she just then acknowledged her shaking limbs. She was scared of fighting, scared of dying, scared of losing Neuro...

"I can't do this." She finally muttered, burying her face in her hands. And as she cried all she could think of was Neuro calling her a coward once again. But that alone wasn't enough to motivate her into action this time. She didn't want him to think of her as a coward, but the thought that he seemed to have been dreading the confrontation with X and XI as much as her wasn't comforting at all. There was nothing to give her courage now, not even the person she counted on the most to give her the courage to face her fears.

Kanae would be disappointed.

Yako lifted her head, looking down at her hands covered in tears. How long had it been since she had even thought of Kanae, at least when she'd been alive? But it was true: if Kanae saw her now, she would be very disappointed. And she wouldn't be afraid to show it either, she'd get down at eye level with her, rest her hands on her shoulders and tell her to stop being a baby.

"Look at what you've accomplished so far!" She would tell her. "Are you just going to give up now? Just like that? That's no way to be, wipe away those silly tears!"

With her mind still lingering on her loved ones passed, she thought of Higuchi. He would probably try and convince her everything would be alright, his hands shaking just as equally as much as hers resting gently on her shoulders to try to keep her from feeling their quivering. He'd go on and try to make her look at the positives and make damn sure to let her know she wouldn't be alone

"I know you can do this!" He would probably say with a shy, wavering smile. "You're an amazing person, Yako, you've proved that so far! Just believe in yourself."

And on the flip side of things, Godai would give her a seemingly endless scolding: how crying was bad for her complexion and what in the world was she doing just moping around doing nothing at all? He'd talk down to her, tell her that what she was doing now was all wrong, but with good intentions in mind no matter how harsh his words were. And she'd end up feeling bad about what she was doing and force herself to try harder in attempt to get him to stop.

"That's no way to behave, idiot!" Godai would most likely snap. "If you want to wallow around and cry about how you can't do it, do it somewhere else some other time! Right now you have a job to do, got it!?"

And Akane… Akane would probably find her, talk down to her, compare her to a bug go on and on about Neuro, that's for sure. Why wasn't she with Neuro right now, how sitting around and wishing she would disappear would do nothing to help Neuro, and how she was Neuro's only chance to find happiness. She'd thrust her need to make sure Neuro was happy all on her, and make her feel guilty about not being by his side at that moment.

"I won't be there to help Neuro, got it?" She would say harshly. "What good are you going to do Neuro by just sitting here being a whiney loser? Don't make me regret letting you be the one who gets to take that special place by Neuro's side, or else I'll make you regret it!"

None of them would want her to just throw up her arms and give up. None of them would be happy with her sitting there, crying and wanting all of it to just end. They'd all want her to push on, no matter what she was about to face- not give up. And even though they were gone, she still felt compelled to not let them down.

"And why, might I ask, are you sitting and crying in a place like this?" Yako gasped, her head snapping up. What she heard wasn't what one of her thoughts of what her late friends would say to her; a familiar voice was asking her in real time what she was doing. She wiped at her eyes and turned her gaze upward to see Neuro, looking down at her with an eyebrow cocked in confusion.

"I'm not crying, not anymore." She told him, shaking her head. "And I guess I came here to think. This is where this whole mess began, after all. I figured I might as well visit it one last time, for old times sake."

"Something told me you'd come here to do that. If I had been wrong I wouldn't have known where you had wandered off to, destroyed the hairclip I gave you." Neuro told her, giving her a look that questioned her intelligence. In hindsight, leaving without telling Neuro where she was going now that he couldn't simply sense where she was, was a pretty absent-minded thing to have done.

"Sorry…I should have thought about that."

"Don't be. I found you, that's all that matters." He fished through his pocket, pulling out a familiar looking trinket. Her hairclip, all pieced together and looking good as new. "But just in case, here's this so you won't have to be sorry about this sort of thing again." Yako smiled, taking the hairclip back and slipping it into the old, familiar place.

"Are you so sure there will even be a chance for me to do this sort of thing again?" She asked him. "For all we know, this could be the last time we do any of these things at all."

"I can't say anything for sure, but I'd like to think we'll be able to share this sort of thing and all other sorts of things over and over again, no matter how unlikely it is." Neuro told her, reaching out to fix the hairclip she'd slipped in a little askew. "And what about you? The terror in your eyes is no surprise."

"Of course I'm scared! Anyone faced with death is bound to be at least a little scared…" Yako said, sounding just as terrified as she looked at first before her uncertain gaze met his questioning one. "But… I'm not going to try and run away from this, no matter how scared I am. What happens from here will happen, there's no avoiding it. All there is left to do now is face it and hope for the best."

"Yako…" Neuro reached out, his cold hand caressing her cheek.

"Well, isn't this a touching scene. What do you think, my brother?" Both Yako and Neuro quickly separated upon hearing the sickeningly sweet voice of XI break through the silence that had fallen all around them. Without even realizing it, they had been brought into a possessed space just like the one Ai had used, where there was nothing except for them, X and XI, who were now standing before them, greeting them with excited, and almost hungry smiles.

"Yes, very touching indeed, though I've never been a fan of things like this, myself. Things like this get boring really fast." X stated. "I say we liven things up a bit before things start to get too boring, wouldn't you say so, too, my sister?"

"Oh, I agree." XI responded with a cheery nod before eyeing Neuro and Yako with a sinister glance, smile still plastered on her face. Both of them readied themselves for some sort of sudden attack from either of them, Yako summoning her blades and Neuro removing one of his gloves. "Though if we just start attacking all at once, things will just start to get confusing, and that's no good."

"Indeed, a confusing game isn't a fun game at all." X said with a chuckle. "How about we make it a little more simple, I don't mind as long as your happy, my sister." The two of them shared a look, smiling at one another before turning to Neuro and Yako.

"Well if you're fine with it, you can play with Neuro. I've been hoping so very much that I would be to play with the Ultimate Mystery's container just a bit, if you don't mind." XI's gaze centered in on Yako, and she felt a cold shiver run all the way through her.

"Not at all, my sister, just as long as you don't play to rough, alright?" X said with a sneer. "When you break her, I want to be there with you."

"Of course, of course." XI assured him. "I'd never do something like that without you. There's no way I would hog that all to myself."

"I just wanted to make sure." X chuckled, his grin growing wider. "You two play nice now." With that said, X suddenly vanished before Yako's eyes, and upon further inspection, Neuro had disappeared as well.

"Don't worry about him, my brother is going to take good care of Neuro." XI assured Yako with a kind smile, though her words were laced with venom. "He's good at making sure his toys last, even if he plays a little rough. Try not to think about it too much, though, you and I get to play together as well until he's done having his fun."

Yako, ready for just about anything, readied herself for an attack. By the way XI looked at her it seemed likely she wasn't going to take any more time to chat. But in a blink of an eye, XI had vanished before her eyes, leaving her in the empty possessed space with only the echoes of her own panicked breathing to keep her company. She looked back and fourth wildly, half expecting XI to attack her from behind, but instead she heard a voice call her name.

"Yako…" The voice didn't belong to XI. It was much more familiar, and it tugged at Yako's heart hearing it.

"K-Kanae!?" Yako gasped, whipping back around to find her late best friend standing before her. "Kanae is that you!?" A smile on her face, Yako took an excited step forward before she noticed the look her supposedly dead friend was giving her. It was a look laced with hatred and distrust, not the usual kind go-get-em look that Kanae usually wore. "Kanae?"

"It's all your fault." Kanae snapped through bared teeth, the glare she was shooting Yako intensifying, and paired with her harsh words, it was enough to make Yako take a large step backward away from her. "It's all your fault I died, Yako!"

"W-What?" Yako stammered, feeling her heart sink at hearing Kanae hiss those words. The thought she'd been denying to herself over and over again- that it _had_ been all her fault Kanae had perished- was being said aloud by the lips of that very person. "Kanae… you… do you really think that?"

"Why shouldn't she, it's a well known fact that it's because of you that she got dragged into this mess." A second, all too familiar voice shot back. Yako spun around, turning her attention away from Kanae to find another familiar face glaring hatefully back at her.

"H-Higuchi!" She gasped, shaking her head in disbelief.

"And you dragged me in with your own hands!" Higuchi continued. "You clung to me when you could have very well handled things yourself, and for what? So I could die trying to save you? All I was, was a human shield to you. You didn't even pay any attention to how I felt… Neuro and all those other demons aren't the monsters, you are!"

"No! You've got it all wrong!" Yako shouted in desperation. "It wasn't like that, I would never have thought of you as a-"

"Everywhere you went, you brought bad luck and despair, and everyone you got close to perished because you took your situation too lightly." Yet another sharp and familiar voice echoed from behind her, and yet again Yako turned around to find another familiar face looking back at her angrily. This time it was Godai, his usual angry look amplified much more than usual.

"Please… stop…" Yako muttered, feeling tears begin to build up, but not enough to blur her vision and possibly the expressions of all her dead friends that were stabbing into her. "I'm sorry… I…"

"You didn't care about anyone else, did you?" Godai snarled. "All you cared about was protecting your own hide, you didn't care about any of us at all. You brought each of our deaths upon us without even a second thought!"

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean for any of this to happen! I didn't…"

"All you say is that, 'you're sorry, you're sorry', but every single one of your apologies is as empty as your heart." Another voice, another person Yako recognized.

"A…Akane…"

"Can someone as weak and as careless as you really be Neuro's happiness?" Akane asked harshly. "Someone who just allowed everyone around her to perish so that that could live? You're blatant disregard for human life is just as bad as a demon's!"

"No! I- I… Stop this, please! I'm sorry! I'm… I'm…" Yako cried, beginning to feel her body violently shake and her legs threatening to stop supporting her.

"If you're sorry…" She heard Kanae's voice say behind her, "Then you'll die, just like the rest of us." Just then, Yako felt a threatening presence behind her, and out of instinct she turned around, her blades meeting the blade of a coal-black scythe that was inches away from slicing her open. And holding the hilt was XI, looking extremely pleased over Yako's suffering.

"Why do you insist on trying to defend yourself?" She asked with a cruel smirk. "Your own friends want you to die, you should respect their wishes!" Yako stammered a bit at first, unsure of what to say as she looked around. Kanae, Higuchi, Godai and Akane were no longer in the possessed space, but their angry words still rang clear inside of her head. And at first, she almost gave in, allowing XI's blade to draw just a little closer to her skin, before she stopped her again.

"No…" Yako mumbled in a low tone.

"What was that- was that a 'no'?" XI cackled. "You heard what they said: they hate you, and they want you to die! Why not end this stupid little game right here and now? You have the permission of all your dead loved ones!" As she spoke, Yako watched in shock, confusion and horror as XI's facial features rapidly changed, going from looking like Kanae to looking like Higuchi, Godai and Akane. "Just die already! The way you struggle to stay alive and let everyone else around you die is pathetic! You exist to be ripped open and torn apart, and that's just what you deserve! DIE!"

"NO!" Yako shouted back, pushing XI back with all of her might. She stumbled backward, nearly falling backwards as her face changed back to normal. Her default creepily-happy look was still on her face, but with a subtle hint of annoyance that Yako had refused.

"Such a stubborn little toy, most of my other playthings give into their friend's demands right away!"

"Those… those aren't my friends!" Yako snapped, glaring angrily back at XI, who's eyes narrowed as she continued to speak. "My friends… my friends wouldn't think that way! They wouldn't want me to die, they'd want me to live on. I know my friends, and you clearly don't, XI! Other people may have fallen for your shape-shifting act, but not me!" She lunged at XI, their weapons colliding with a loud clang over and over again as the two of them fought furiously.

"Kanae died by accident! Hime used her as a puppet and there was nothing I could have done to foresee it or stop her!" Yako continued on, pushing XI further and further backward. "Higuchi died to save me, but he did it because he cared for me and because he wanted me to live on. Before he died he even expressed to me that he wanted me to live on! And Godai died because of Ai's total disregard for demon code! They died in the game I was apart of, but none of it was my fault!" Yako sliced at XI again, this time as her blades met her own, they sliced clean through the tip of the scythe's blade, sending it flying through the air and clattering a short distance away. Gasping in surprise, XI quickly leaped back, her usual happy look all but clear on her face now.

"Huh, seems I underestimated you by a lot. That makes our little game a bit more difficult that I originally expected." She said through a sharp frown. "But it's all going to be fun in the end once I rip you open with X and retrieve what was ours in the first place!"

"What, you mean the Ultimate Mystery?" Yako asked.

"The Ultimate Mystery holds the keys to ruling all of hell, a role X and I were originally supposed to be blessed with! It belongs to no one else, none of those other pathetic, bottom feeding demons who have been trying and failing to claim it! No one else deserves it but us, no one else should expect it but us!" With a wave of her weapon, the tip of the blade that Yako had cut off reformed, and immediately after that, she charged at Yako, now taking her turn in pushing Yako further and further back with each heavy blow.

"That… that's where you're wrong!" Yako snarled, their blades locked as they stared each other down. "I'm sure the reason Satan decided to hold this game and take away the opportunity for you and X to rule hell because someone who sat around like a spoiled brat simply expecting everything to be given to with without any effort on their part doesn't have the right to rule!"

"What did you say!?" XI spat, throwing Yako backward.

"I said you and X don't have any right to rule over hell!" Yako snapped, catching herself just in time to block another blow from AI. "You've never experienced hardship, all you've ever done is stand safely in your father's shadow and hardly lifted a finger! The right to rule hell belongs to someone who has suffered, someone who has felt pain and sadness, but persevered!"

"You have no right to regulate what it takes to rule hell, you fool!" XI bit back, infuriated.

"As the container of the Ultimate Mystery, I feel I have some say! The person who deserves the Ultimate Mystery isn't you or X or anyone else! The Ultimate Mystery… belongs to Neuro!" Yako quickly sidestepped XI's next attack instead of blocking, and immediately went on the offensive as she slashed at an opening on XI's side. With a quick cut through the air, one of her blades severed one of XI's arms clean off her body.

"G-GAH!" XI cried out, her scythe slipping from her one other hand as she stumbled backward in shock. But something didn't seem right. Expecting to see blood flying from XI's wound, Yako looked to her, confused to find no such thing. Her arm was gone, but she wasn't bleeding at all. And XI looked just as surprised about it as Yako was as she looked down at her injury. A clear view of her insides revealed no muscle or bone, just a solid mass.

"You… you're a doll!" Yako gasped.

"…No! No, I can't be a doll!" XI cried, eyes still fixed on where her arm used to be. "There's no way, I'm not a doll! I'm X's sister! His sister!"

"From what I've witnessed, dolls are allowed to believe all sorts of things." Yako told her. "I'm sure, if he made you, that X simply implanted those thoughts inside of you-"

"No, no, no, no, NO!" XI screamed, snatching up her scythe from the ground. "I'm not a doll! I'm _not_ a doll!"

"Then what do you call that!?" Yako asked harshly, motioning to XI's arm. Instead of answering, XI simply screeched in anger and haphazardly charged at Yako, her eyes ablaze with fury. But in her fury, her attack was sloppy, and it simply only left her more open for an attack, and Yako more than gladly took that opportunity, running both her blades clean through XI.

"I'm not…" XI weakly gasped as the two halves of her fell to the ground. Yako looked back at XI's motionless body in surprise, not having expected to come out of the battle alive. A feeling of accomplishment coursed through her, but it only lasted a moment before the possessed space that separated her from Neuro and X faded, revealing the battle that had been happening while she had fought XI.

There was Neuro, on his knees and obviously beaten badly, staring down at exhaustedly at the ground. One of his arms had been hacked away, and his body was covered in deep, bleeding wounds. And X was charging at him with a long, black blade covered with Neuro's own blood, ready to give the finishing blow that Neuro was much to weak to defend himself from.

"Neuro!" Yako cried, running towards him. X acknowledged her briefly, but it was as if her appearance didn't even matter as he continued to dash forward towards Neuro. And so did Yako as she cast away her blades as she ran. There was no way she'd be able to find the time to block X's attack, they'd just get in the way.

And as she ran toward him, only one thought ran through her mind: that no matter what happened, Neuro would be the one to receive the Ultimate Mystery, no matter what!


	23. Red Thread

Yako felt a white hot pain run through her entire body as a metallic taste began to build in her mouth. She was afraid to look down- the very thought of glancing down to assess what she already knew made her shake. All she could do was stare back at Neuro, who was looking back at her with wide eyes.

In her rush, Yako didn't have time to think of any sort of safe and foolproof plan to save Neuro from X's killing strike. So instead, she simply had blocked his way and took the blow meant for him. And seeing the mortified look in Neuro's eyes, she was unsure about whether or not her act of self sacrifice was worth it or not.

"Y…Yako…"

"So, you actually managed to defeat XI, did you?" X asked, though he didn't seem angry about that fact at all. Yako could hear the sneer in the way that his voice sounded as he twisted the blade that he had run through her gut just a bit, but it was enough to make Yako cry out in pain as a flow of blood choked her before it flowed freely from her mouth. "I never would have imagined anyone would defeat my finest toy."

"Stop!" Neuro barked, his eyes still wide in shock, though his voice was dripping with anger.

"Or else you'll what? You're one quick slice away from coming as close to death as her." X laughed. "There's nothing you can do but watch as I take back what was rightfully mine in the first place. I'm a little disappointed my dearest 'sister' can't be here to share this moment with me, but in a way I really should thank you, Yako. I only made XI for my entertainment alone. I was never going to let her share in the glory of taking the Ultimate Mystery or the roll as a ruler of hell. After all, she was just an inanimate object…something you're going to become very, very soon."

"N-" Yako began to say before she felt X draw the blade from her gut, sending another fresh flow of blood flowing from her throat and out her mouth. Everything felt distant, even the pain blooming from her wound and the sudden feeling of an arm wrapping around her.

"If you're going to kill her, then you'll have to kill me as well." Neuro told X in a low growl, but he didn't seem to give much of a care, as all he did was lightly chuckle.

"Fine, no loss there. I suppose after all the work you did to try and protect her, you might as well die with her." X snickered, lifting the blade into the air. "Now, to finally claim my prize!"

"NO!" Yako yelled in a surprisingly loud tone of voice despite her condition. "THE ULTIMATE MYSTERY… DOESN'T BELONG TO YOU!"

As she shouted, a bright light suddenly began to bloom from around her, and it only grew brighter and brighter.

'What is this feeling?' Yako thought to herself as her and Neuro were engulfed in the blinding light. 'It feels so… peaceful. I've never felt this way before…'

"What is this!?" X cried shrilly, trying to cover his eyes. The light was so bright, it felt as if it were burning him. He couldn't strike them, either- it was like he'd been paralyzed. "D-Damn it! Damn you both, the Ultimate Mystery is mine! Hell's throne is mine!" But X's angry cries seemed like a far, far away echo to Neuro and Yako, who were still holding each other.

"Yako, what's going on?!" Neuro asked, the look of frightful concern still in his eyes.

"Neuro… All this time I figured the Ultimate Mystery would just be taken from me the moment someone got a chance, but now I see… I guess I have the ability to choose who really deserves it in the end. It is apart of me, after all…" Yako mumbled, blood still flowing past her lips as she brought her face close to his.

"…" Neuro looked back at her silently, his shocked look softening just a bit. "And who will you choose to have it then?"

"The person who deserves to have it the most… the person I love most of all…" Yako told him, feeling the familiar sting of tears as a choked-up feeling hindered her ability to breath even more. "The person who fought the hardest to protect it, and the person… who didn't even care about whether or not he'd ever even obtain it at all." She paused for a moment, choking back a sad sob as she turned away so he wouldn't see the pained look on her face. She looked back to him with a sad smile that was quickly beginning to waver. "The Ultimate Mystery belongs to you, Neuro, it always has."

"Yako, I…" But Yako couldn't hear the rest of Neuro had to say. He suddenly sounded like he was miles away, and she could no longer feel his arm comfortingly embracing her. And the light around them had grown so bright she was forced to cover her eyes that were brimming with tears.

"Neuro? Neuro!?" She shouted, but there was no answer, not at first anyway. She soon began to hear the faint sound of someone calling back her name. And although it wasn't Neuro's voice, it wasn't a voice of a stranger. It sounded just like Kanae calling out her name.

'Oh, god, I really am dead, aren't I? I didn't even get to tell Neuro goodbye, I didn't get to tell him one last time that I-'

"YAKO!" Yako's eyes shot open, no longer finding a blinding bright light in front of her eyes. Instead she was looking up at Kanae, who had her hands firmly on her shoulders, and behind her it was easy to see the two of them were in a familiar looking alleyway.

"Am I… am I dead?" Yako asked groggily.

"Oh thank god" Kanae sighed, sounding extremely relieved. "Godai, come back! She's okay, she just fainted, you don't have to call for an ambulance!"

"That's a relief." She could hear Godai say gruffly before he came back out into the ally way. "Who knows how much calling an ambulance would have cost."

"Is this…? I'm alive?"

"Of course you are, weirdo. You gave us a pretty big scare though, coming out here and just collapsing like that. I know Godai's pretty harsh, but I didn't imagine you were under that much stress!" Kanae chuckled lightly.

"Where…" Yako asked, looking a bit more confused now as she sat up. "Where is Neuro?"

"Neuro?" Kanae questioned with a baffled tilt of her head. "Who is Neuro?" She reached out, resting her hand on Yako's forehead. "Maybe you're more out of it then I thought…" Yako pulled away, looking back and fourth wildly. She was in the alleyway back at the modeling agency, and as she looked around she felt the old, almost unfamiliar feeling of long hair brushing against her shoulders. And the dress she was wearing was the exact same one she wore when she had first been attacked.

"Was it… a dream?" She asked herself, reaching up to feel the place where her hairclip had been placed, but there was nothing there- just a mess of bobby pins.

"Hey, Yako, are you alright?" Kanae asked, looking at her friend in concern. And just as she finished asking, Yako began to sob. And this time not because she'd come across something new and positively frightening, but because she'd lost something familiar and precious.

* * *

"U-Um, excuse me…" Yako turned around, having been interrupted mid-conversation by two younger girls hiding shyly behind magazines with her own face looking back at her from the cover. "You…you wouldn't happen to be Katsuragi Yako, would you?" Yako looked back at them in surprise for a short moment. No matter how often she was approached now, being asked if she was really who she was, was still new to her.

"Yes, I'm her." She told them with a warm smile. "I'm guessing by the looks of things that you want an autograph, right?" The two girls looked back at her blushingly, fumbling with words before nodding and holding out their magazines for Yako to sign. Chuckling under her breath, Yako took the pen out of her pocket she always had on her just in case things like this happened. Once she'd done so, the two of them thanked her as if she'd just handed them back something priceless and rare instead of their magazines freshly autographed. Smiling to herself, she watched them as they quickly turned and ran off.

"Well, look at you, miss popular."

"Sorry, I didn't expect anyone to approach me here." Yako turned back around to face Kanae, who was laughing at the scene as if she'd just witnessed something hilarious. The two of them were standing in the terminal of the airport, and just like anywhere else they had been going lately, it seemed at least a few people recognized Yako. After waking up from what she only had to assume was some sort of amazing dream, Yako's modeling career had taken off, and there was even plans of being cast in a movie or two. It was all happening so fast it was making her head spin.

"Well you certainly picked a fine time to suddenly get all famous on us." Kanae snickered. "If you were still fumbling around back at the agency and getting Godai all mad every day, I wouldn't have been able to accept this offer to start modeling overseas."

"It's still so strange you're going away, we've hardly been a car drive away from each other for as long as I can remember." Yako sighed, looking a bit glum.

"Hey, don't get too down, I'll make sure to call you every day and tell you all about my adventures." Kanae assured her. "I'll still be around, just not glued to your hip for a couple of years. You think you can keep Godai tamed without me?"

"I think I've started to get the hang of it." Yako nodded, her smile returning. "…Thank you… for everything."

"Hey, don't mention it, what are friends for?" Kanae grinned widely, patting Yako's shoulder. "You just keep on being amazing, and maybe I'll start seeing your face in magazines overseas!" An announcement rang through the terminal, announcing the flight Kanae was supposed to take would be boarding shortly.

"Well… there's my cue." Kanae said, finally looking a bit melancholy that she was leaving her closest friend. "You'd better not do anything stupid to screw up what you've got going while I'm gone, or I'll never forgive you!"

"You don't have to worry about that, if it's one thing I've learned, it's to not back down from a challenge." Yako assured her before the two of them exchanged a friendly hug.

"Oh, and before I go…" Kanae grinned. "I'm know I was sworn to secrecy, but you really should try calling up Higuchi some time; boy still has a crush on you the size of a planet! You'd better hurry up, or else you'll end up all alone!"

"Hey!" Yako shouted to Kanae, who, with her final comment, had turned her back and began to speed away. She looked over her shoulder one last time and gave Yako one last farewell wave, which Yako returned. She waited, staying rooted to the spot until she disappeared out of sight.

"You'll be fine." She told herself, quickly reaching up to wipe at her eyes before any tears could flow freely down her face. "Everything will be… just fine." She recalled the events of her dream- a sort of ritual she had become accustomed to performing whenever she felt unsure of herself. In it, she'd done so many amazing things and endured a lot worse then seeing her friend off at an airport. Compared to that, this would be a piece of cake.

And as always, even though it motivated her, it always brought a saddening feeling of it's own. Because, with the memories of the dream, there were the memories of a certain someone from the dream who was constantly haunting her mind, day and night. And every time she thought of him, she felt her heart sink, because he hadn't really been there.

"Everything…will be…"

"Excuse me, miss…" Came a voice from behind her. At first she thought she was imagining things, because the voice sounded much too familiar, and she figured that while she had _him_ on the brain, she was probably hearing his voice. But the voice continued. "What might a someone like you be looking so sad about? I don't think you have much of a reason to cry at all… worm." Yako whipped around, her eyes filled with tears as she met the vibrant green eyes she figured she'd only see in her dreams, and said aloud the name she thought she'd never get to say aloud again.

"Neuro!"

* * *

**Say what you will, I loved this story and still do, really. I started planning it in 2009, wrote it in 2010 and finished it a year after that. It's a story that took up a lot of my time and attention, and thus has a special place in my heart despite the fact it's almost nothing like Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro. At all. I admit, this story will probably hurt you if you're a real fandom purist, but it's personally one of my favorite stories I've written up until now. If you actually read it all the way through, I commend you, and thank you for giving Reality Redux a read! **

**~Zabu**


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